The White Flower
by Sosh022
Summary: AU What if: -Kiyosumi had the prestigious mahjong club while Shiraitodai was unknown. In other words, the situation between Kiyosumi and Shiraitodai were switched. -Saki and Teru never split, and both live in West Tokyo.
1. Encounter

It was a warm summer day. A slight breeze blew through Tokyo, making petals dance along to the rhythm of the wind.

In a small park, near a bridge, sat Miyanaga Saki. The tree above her provided shade from the sun overhead. White petals gently floated around her as she enjoyed her book.

A single petal fell onto the page and disrupted Saki's reading. She looked up and realized a lot of time had passed since she first sat down.

Smiling, she closed the book and was about to get up when she felt an electric shock burst through her body.

She gasped.

_What was that overwhelming aura just now?_

She looked around. There was nobody nearby.

_Did I just imagine that?_

Brushing away her thoughts, she got up, dusted her skirt off, and started to head back home where her Onee-chan was waiting for her.

As she was walking she suddenly tripped and fell.

"Owww…"she whined while rubbing her heard. _Why am I such a klutz?_

"Are you okay?" an angelic voice broke Saki out of her reverie.

When she looked up to see the owner of the pretty voice, she gasped.

"What a pretty girl…"she muttered under her breath unconsciously. Her whole body froze, as if she were in a trance. _Wait, did the aura from before…"_

The girl had long pink hair, alluring blue eyes, and a set of beautiful, large _ahem. _ For some reason, the pink hair girl looked familiar…

"Heh?" The girl tilted her head, not quite hearing what Saki muttered. "Um…Are you alright?"

"Eh?!" Saki's faced exploded in a soft pink as she hurriedly stood up. "Ah. Haha I'm alright. This happens a lot. I seem to fall quite a lot," she embarrassingly let out.

_Haha how cute, thought Nodoka. Wait..she seems familiar. Have I met her before?_

"Hm. Alright. Well nice to meet you, I'm Haramura Nodoka. I'm in the third year of middle school." The pink haired placed her hand out towards Saki.

"Hn. Hello. My name is Miyanaga Saki. Nice to meet you too. I'm also in the third year of middle school." Saki shook Nodoka's hand and blushed even further. Only then, did Saki notice Haramura-san's uniform.

"Wow. What a pretty school uniform. My school uniform is so plain. What middle school do you go to Haramura-san?"

"Thank you Miyanaga-san. I go to Takatoobara Middle School."

"Oh. I've never heard of it." Saki tilted her head to the side making Nodoka squeal inwardly. _Omg so adorable!_

"It's located in Nagano," explained Nodoka. "I'm here in Tokyo for a school event."

"School event? Wha-"

"NODO-CHANNN! HURRY UP!" screamed a small girl with short orange hair.

"Yuuki!" gasped a surprised Nodoka.

"Hurry up Nodoka. We need you."

"But-"

With that, Yuuki dragged Nodoka away.

"Wait Yuuki. Uh..uh. Bye Miyanaga-san. Hope to see you again!" Nodoka shouted as her small energetic friend dragged her away.

"Bye bye Haramura-san. I do hope we meet again!" shouted Saki as she waved to her new friend.

_I have a feeling we will meet again, thought Saki._

_Wait. Where am I?!_

~_At the National Middle School Championships~_

"Nodo-chan who was that?"

"Ah. A friend."

"I didn't know you had friends in Tokyo."

"Ahaha. Um well we just met." _But she seemed very familiar. _

"Really?! I thought you were the shy type though! When I first met you, you barely said anything!"

Nodoka glared at Yuuki.

"I am not shy! I just…don't talk as much as you do. Yes, that's right. Unlike you, I have a filter for my mouth."

"Aw that's mean Nodo-chan. Anyways hurry up! The first round of the individuals are starting. While we may have lost in the team tournament, Nodoka, you may stand a chance in the individual competition. Go make us proud djey?"

"Of course."

And with that, Nodoka headed towards the game room.


	2. Inter-Middle Champion

**Author's Note:**

Because this is an AU, some things are going to be different from the anime and the manga.

I made up the names of the schools here(except for Nodoka's) as well as the players. I also don't speak Japanese, so if these names are weird, don't hurt me.

Anyways, I never did introduce myself, though you guys could probably care less. Call me Sosh. And leave your reviews of the chapters to help me improve my writing. Suggestions, comments, questions about anything (anything at all) are all welcome. Tbh I would rather you bash me than stay silent. :p *prepares armor for heavy bashing.

Enjoy :D

~End Author's Note~

* * *

As Saki stepped in to her house, she saw her sister sitting on the couch watching TV.

"Onee- chan I'm back!"

"Hm? Welcome back Saki. Did you get lost again?"

"No!" Saki grumbled. Saki plopped next to Teru on the couch."What are you watching?"

Teru turned to face her younger sister and smirked. "Sakura Trick" she replied with a glint in her eye.

Saki just looked at her sister, shocked. 0.0 "Onee-chan..t-that's…" Saki covered her eyes.

"Fine, fine. I'll change the channel." Teru grabbed the remote and surfed through the channels.

"Cooking, trivia, sports, I don't know, boring, korean drama, so cliche."

While Teru was switching channels at lightning speed, Saki caught a glimpse of pink hair.

"Wait Onee-chan go back!" Saki clutched onto her sister's arm.

"Huh? Uh alright." Teru flipped back to a previous channel. "I didn't know you liked korean dramas."

"That's not what I meant! Keep going...Stop! This one!"

The TV displayed a mahjong table with four players.

_"The finals of the national middle school mahjong championships is now underway!" The announcer's voice blasted from the small television._

_"Sitting east, we have the third year representative of Tachibana Middle School, Yuzuki Hana. Sitting west is second year Kokoro Naomi from Tokami Middle. In the north seat is third year Daichi Sachika from Yoshiko Middle School." _

The camera panned from face to face on the mahjong table.

_"Finally, in the south, from Nagano, we have Takatoobara Middle School's third year representative and the favorite to win this year, Haramura Nodoka! "_

"Ah. That's her!" exclaimed Saki.

The television screen displayed a very familiar pink haired girl.

"Onee-chan! That's the girl I met in the park! She told me she was here for a school event but I had no idea that she played...mahjong."

"Mahjong?...It's been awhile huh?"

"...Yeah..."

_"Tsumo. 4000 all,"_ said the angelic, but robotic voice.

"She's good," stated Saki quietly.

Teru stayed quiet. _Saki's friend is quite...well grown isn't she? _She glared at the pink haired girl's chest, then looked down at her own, then at Saki's, then finally back to the TV. _Sigh. She's only in middle school too. How unfair._

"Nagano huh? That's the prefecture with Kiyosumi High School right? Kiyosumi won the inter-high national championships last year right?" asked Saki.

"Yeah," replied Teru.

_"Ron! 7,700 please."_ Nodoka had won again.

Saki stared at the TV.

"Hey Onee-chan... Is there... Is there a mahjong club at Shiraitodai?"

Teru stared at Saki, before hesitantly answering. "Yeah. But it's not really popular. They couldn't compete in the team competition last year because they didn't have enough players. And none of the players competed in individuals."

"Is that so? Is mahjong not popular there?"

"No. Not really. In this prefecture, most people would go to Shouan Girls for mahjong."

"But you go to Shiraitodai right? You could have...the club could have been more popular if...if...you..."

"I know Saki, I know. But you know I quit playing. So did you."

"Sorry Onee-chan. It's all my fault." Saki looked at we feet as guilt washed over her.

"It's not your fault, Saki. It was an accident."

"No it was my fault. If I didn't, if I had'nt...then the car..."

"Saki it wasn't your fault alright? No one blames you. It was raining, the road was wet and the other driver swerved on to the wrong side of the road."

"Plus, I didn't stop playing because of that," Teru continued. "It's just, mahjong got too boring. Nobody wanted to play us remember?"

Saki was quiet. _There's another reason isn't there Onee-chan. After she left..._

"Yeah. I always got yelled at for winning or losing too much...I hated mahjong," Saki finally replied.

Teru looked at Saki and sighed inwardly. Mahjong had destroyed their family. But she knew deep inside, both of them couldn't deny the bond they shared with the tiles. She had often found herself drawn to the idea of playing again and wanting to touch the tiles. And more than once has she mindlessly got lost at school only to find herself outside the Mahjong club.

_"Tsumo! 3000/6000!" _Nodoka won again.

"That pink haired girl, your friend, is going to win," Teru suddenly stated. Teru could sense something about the girl. _Is she holding back? I feel like she can play much better._

"Daichi has no chance of winning. Neither do the others. Takatoobara is going to win," stated Teru confidently. "Just watch."

Saki could only comply.

* * *

_~At the Inter-Middle National Championships~_

"Ron. 8000 please"

"AND THAT'S THE END FOLKS! Haramura Nodoka ended the match with a mangan hit to Daichi! Haramura Nodoka is this years inter-middle champion!" screamed one announcer.

"What a game!" exclaimed the second announcer.

"I know right? It became one-sided towards the end. Haramura-san was quite obviously going to win seeing that she held the lead for the majority of the match."

"Haramura-san...she plays quite well for a student her age."

"Oh. Is she one of those 'national class monsters' that appear ever so often?"

"I wouldn't go that far yet. Though we can definitely expect some great things from her in the future. I look forward to seeing her in the inter-high next year."

"Yes, yes. And if she goes to Kiyosumi, we might even be able to see her in the national team tournament."

"Ah. I certainly hope so. She would make an excellent taishou would she not?"

"She certainly would. No matter what school she went to, Haramura Nodoka would be a force to be reckoned with."

"Teehee. Agreed. In more areas than just mahjong though."

"Eh? What do you mean?"

"Well, she's quite grown up wouldn't you say? Hehe?" The announcer looked at her partner's bosom.

"Eh?!" she covered her breasts.

"She is quite mature, and it shows in her playing style. Don't you agree?"

"And what is that supposed to mean?!"

"Oh nothing. I'm just admiring our new champion here. Teehee"

* * *

_~Miyanga Residence~_

"You were right Onee-chan. Even though she didn't win with a lot of big hands, she had super high tenpai efficiency and was very quick. The other three couldn't keep up."

"Yes, she's makes very calculating and logical decisions." _But still, why do I get the feeling she's holding back?_

"Wow really? She's that good?" exclaimed an excited Saki.

Teru nodded. _My senses were never wrong before. I wonder if there's more to the girl._

Saki looked at her hands.

_To be praised by even Onee-chan, Haramura-san must be very good. I kinda wish I could..._

She clenched her hands into a fist and shook her head, trying to clear her mind. She placed her attention to the TV in front of her. Haramura-san was currently getting interviewed as the new inter-middle school champion.

_Haramura-san..._

_I wish we can meet again. And maybe..._

* * *

_~~~with Nodoka~~~_

"Haramura-san! My name is Junko Nishida and I'm a reporter from _Mahjong Weekly. _I would like to interview you on your win."

Nodoka just nodded as she scanned the room. She was surrounded by reporters all trying to shove their microphones and cameras into her face. She felt her cheek get hot with all the attention on her.

_These reporters are so annoying._

_"_First of all, congratulations! How do you feel after winning?"

"How do I feel? I'm happy that I won," came the stoic reply.

"Of course. What about during the match? Were there any moments when you felt desperate or hopeless? Or were you confident on your win?"

"Of course, there were moments when I felt frustrated because a hand wasn't coming together, but in the end, it's important to remain calm and play logically. Mahjong is a game where even the best players lose points," replied Nodoka.

"Spoken like a true champion Haramura-san. One more question. What are your goals for next year? Do you see yourself competing in the nationals for individuals? Or maybe even i the team competition?"

"Naturally I plan to compete in both."

"Really? What high school would you attending then? Kiyosumi?"

Nodoka paused.

"Yes."

"Wow. You'll be a great addition to the current powerhouse of Kiyosumi. We look forward to seeing you play next year."

"Thank you. Now if you would excuse me." Nodoka bowed to the reporters and and walked away.

"Wow she's quite straightforward huh?" the cameraman commented.

"Yeah. But that might just make her appeal to the media even more," replied Junko. "Heh. I feel like I've found a great catch. Not only is she good at mahjong but man her figure is to die for. The media is going to eat her up!" Junko laughed maliciously.

"Heh...alright," the cameraman laughed nervously as he followed Junko back to the media room.

On the other hand, Nodoka had barely opened the door to her waiting room when…

"Nodo-chaaaaaaan!" The midget crushed Nodoka into a hug. "You were seriously amazing. You kicked their butts djey?"

"Haramura senpai! You were amazing!"

"Hm hmm. Perfect play. As expected from you senpai."

"Thank you Yuuki, Maho, and Hiroko."

"Hehe. Nodo-chan's hands were so fast. You almost always got into tenpai by the 9th turn. I bet you were hiding tiles under your boobs," stated Yuuki as she inspected those blobs of fat.

"I was not," Nodoka glared at Yuuki. -_-

Nodoka faced her club members. "Thank you guys, but I'm sorry I couldn't do anything during the team tournament. I-"

"What are you saying?! We've already had this conversation! It's not your fault senpai. It's ours," exclaimed Hiroko.

"Yeah we were dragging you down. We're sorry we couldn't help you win. But I'm going to train super super hard and become just like you senpai!" Maho made a first.

"Haha. Thank you everyone. And no, you weren't dragging me down. We're a team remember?" Nodoka smiled.

"YEP!" exclaimed Yuuki. "Let's go celebrate Nodo-chan's victory djey? Where's the nearest taco restaurant in Tokyo? I want tacos!"

"Agreed," said Hiroko. "Let's go celebrate! The taco part is debatable though. I'm kind of sick of tacos."

*Gasp! "How can you be sick of tacos?! Apologize to taco-san right now!" exclaimed Yuuki.

"Heh? No way." Hiroko crossed her arms.

"Haha. This argument happens way too much," commented Maho.

"Agreed," said Nodoka.

"By the way," Hiroko started, "we have three more days in Tokyo. How about we go sight seeing for the next few days?"

"Ooh! I'm in! As long as there are tacos. I'm going to every taco shop in Tokyo!"

"EHHHHHH?!" exclaimed Nodoka. "Sigh. But sightseeing would sure be nice..."

_Sightseeing eh? We'll be wandering around Tokyo for the next few days. Tokyo...I wonder if I'll meet Miyanaga-san again...Tokyo's so big though. I really shouldn't get my hopes up. But what if..._


	3. Plus Minus Zero

**Author's Note**

This update was quite long. I didn't know where I wanted to end it, and it just kept getting longer so I ended it in an awkward part. I don't know if you guys prefer longer chapters or shorter chapters.

Also, I don't actually play that much Japanese mahjong, so forgive me if something is wrong. Just shoot me a message and I'll try to change it.

The plot is taking a shape of its own. It's not the same as the manga, so keep that in mind. If you have anything you don't like, or something you want added, just comment your thoughts. It'll help. I'll take into consideration your ideas.

Again, comments, questions, and suggestions are always welcome. Hope you guys are enjoying the story so far. By the way, the beginning started out sorta like a crackfic(cuz Yuuki and tacos were involved) so forgive me.

Peace :D

**~End Author's Note~**

* * *

Gray skies overlooked the busy streets of Tokyo. It looked like it might rain soon, but that didn't stop a certain Kataoka Yuuki from forcing her teammates to leave the hotel and go exploring outside.

"Hurry hurry! I heard this place was really good. And there's a taco special today! Hurry up! Nodo-chan you're so slow. All the tacos are going to be gone by the time we get there!" screamed the orange haired girl with pigtails.

"Pant. Pant. Pant. Yuukiii," whined Nodoka, " slow down."

"Yeah Senpai," agreed Maho as she caught her breath. "We've been running all day! We've been to like seven different places in Tokyo already. Give us a break."

"I don't think I can take any more running," complained Hiroko. "Or tacos for that matter."

"Ugh Mitsui-chan is actually lucky that she's sick and couldn't come. With the amount of tacos we've eaten, don't be surprised if I'm sick tomorrow," complained Maho. "Do you think she knew this would happen and faked being sick?" Maho rubbed her beardless chin.

"Wow how evil," commented Hiroko. "She only saved herself?"

"I don't think she faked it..." said Nodoka.

"Nodo-chan is right. Why would anyone possibly give up the chance to eat tacos? Now follow me we're almost there."

"Where exactly are we going?"

"A cafe called 'Lucky Lucky Yummy'. They have good tacos."

"That's a weird name."

"Is it?"

"Yes. It's kinda childish..."

"I don't know. I quite like the name," claimed Yuuki. "Tacos are lucky and yummy to me."

Everyone else just shook their head. They knew Kataoka Yuuki was the definition of childish.

"It's okay, there's other food too. Their katsudon, dukbokki, and dandan noodles are super famous too."

"Wow. What a diverse...ethnic...menu," commented Maho. "I'm starting to get a bad feeling about this. What cafe specializes in tacos, katsudon, dukbokki and dandan noodles?"

Ignoring Maho, Hiroko asked Yuuki, "Why do we have to go there specifically again? Why not the taco restaurant we went to yesterday? It was closer to the hotel."

"Oh! I searched up the restaurant and apparently it has the best tacos in all of Tokyo! It's also a mahjong cafe so we can play mahjong and eat tacos! Isn't that great djey?"

"Seriously? And just when I thought the cafe couldn't get any weirder," stated Maho. Her eyes furrowed in disbelief. Did such a cafe really exist? Why?

"That's a really weird idea though... It's almost like it was made for Yuuki, or something only Yuuki can think of," muttered Hiroko under her breath. She knew very well how obsessed her Senpai is with tacos and mahjong, as if it weren't obvious enough.

"See isn't it just great? So let's go! Hurry up you guys are so slow. Be ready to get your butts kicked. I'm going to be so full of taco power no one will be able to beat me in the east round djey," boasted Yuuki as she pounded her chest with her small fist.

"That's just superstition," Nodoka dryly remarked.

"Right, right. Ms. Princess doesn't believe in superstition djey? Well I'll prove you wrong." Yuuki stuck her tongue out at Nodoka.

"Humph. Looking forward to it."

"After I eat my tacos first djey."

"Sigh. Of course."

"We're here! Finally." Maho said as she held the door open.

"Wow. Look at the underclassmen serving their Senpai djey." Yuuki walked haughtily through the entrance. Nodoka and Hiroko just shook their heads and went in after her, not forgetting to properly thanking Maho for holding the door.

"Welcome back, master." A waitress with midnight black hair dressed in a black and white maid uniform greeted them at the entrance.

"This cafe just got even weirder," stated Maho as she eyed the maid outfit. "Honestly, nothing can surprise me anymore. I give up."

"Hehe I like this place already. Table for four please!" shouted Yuuki and held up two peace signs with her hands.

"Right this way master." The waitress led them to a booth.

Nodoka and Hiroko sat on one side while Yuuki and Maho slid in on the other side. The waitress handed out the menus and took out her notepad and pen.

"Is there anything you want to eat master?"

"Tacos tacos tacos!" screamed Yuuki.

"...Um…" _What an enthusiastic customer. _"Which type would you like master? We have spicy Mexican with chipotle sauce, mild Mediterranean, vegetarian, meat lover, special Japanese style, and the sweet dessert taco."

"That is...quite a diverse taco menu you have there..." 0.0 Nodoka remarked.

"This is such a hard decision...ah! I'll take one of each!" answered Yuuki.

This surprised the waitress, but she only let the surprise show for a second on her face. _This little chibi sure can eat can't she. _"Very well. How about you?" she asked the other three.

"Anything but tacos," replied Maho immediately.

Nodoka just sighed. "Just get us some salad."

"Actually, I want to try their katsudon," said Hiroko.

"I want a salad like senpai," chimed Maho while she looked at Nodoka with eyes full of admiration. _I'm going to be just like Nodoka senpai!_

"Excellent choice masters. Your food will arrive shortly."

"Thank you," Nodoka replied. The waitress slightly bowed and left.

While waiting, the four of them looked around the cafe. It was a quaint cafe with around ten or so separate booths and tables on one side. On the other side, there were four automatic mahjong tables set up. Two of them were already occupied. One of the games in particular caught Nodoka's eyes.

_Hm. Those four players look familiar. I wonder who they ar-_

"Oh no!" Hiroko suddenly exclaimed. Everyone turned to look at the distressed girl.

Not noticing anything wrong, Nodoka asked, "What's wrong Hiroko? Did you forget something?"

"No, no. It's just, well, look outside."

All four turned to look out the windows. They saw water droplets falling heavily against the window pane. The droplets rained down so hard that the view of the outside was completely blurred.

"Ah. So it's raining…" commented Maho calmly. "EH!? BUT WE DON'T HAVE UMBRELLAS! WE'RE GOING TO HAVE TO WALK ALL THE WAY BACK TO THE HOTEL!? THAT'S AT LEAST A TWENTY MINUTE WALK. I WOULD DROWN BEFORE WE REACHED THE HOTEL!" exclaimed Maho as she clutched the sides of of face in despair and flopped around the table.

"Calm down Maho!" shouted Hiroko. Hiroko pushed Maho back into her seat so that she sat properly and quietly.

"It's okay. We can just wait here until the rain stops or lessens." Nodoka patted Maho's head.

"Sniff. You're right. I overreacted senpai. I'm sorry for my outburst," replied Maho as she bowed her head slightly to show her repentance.

"Heh. You're such a kid," smirked Yuuki.

"I DON'T WANT TO HEAR THAT FROM YOU!" Maho stood up on her seat and pointed accusingly at Yuuki.

"Sit down!" Hiroko pushed her back into her seat. "Both of you, quiet until the food comes. Got it?"

"Hmph," replied the two kids. _So damn immature._

* * *

~_Earlier that day~_

"Saki you ready? Let's go."

"Yeah. Coming Onee-chan." Saki quickly slipped on her shoes and ran outside.

The skies were cloudy and it looked like it was about to rain.

Teru frowned. _Hm. The weather report didn't say it was going to rain._

_"Onee-chan, _should we bring an umbrella just in case?"

Teru shook her head. "No, I don't think it's going to rain. And even if it does, it'll probably be a light drizzle and pass over quickly."

Nodding her head, Saki walked over to Teru and clung on to her sister's left arm with her right arm. Together, the two sisters walked the familiar path that they have walked for the past five years. People rushed restlessly and silently passed them. The world seemed not to exist to the two of them. The only thing that mattered was that the other was there. Teru's hand in Saki's was all Saki needed to know that she was not alone, and neither was her Onee-chan.

_It's that time of the year again huh. _

Saki looked up at the skies. The clouds reminded her of that day.

_It was raining that day.._

* * *

_~flashback to five years ago~_

_"Father, can you go any faster? We're late!"_

_"I'm sorry Saki, but it's raining too hard. The roads are too slippery, so I can't go any faster. It's too dangerous."_

_"But I'm going to be disqualified if I don't show up on time!"_

_"I'm going as fast as I can Saki."_

_"Ugh. Well go faster. This competition is really important to me."_

_"Saki sit back down in your seat!" Her father turned his head to reprimand Saki._

_"WATCH OUT!"_

_The car swerved to side and crashed into the tree. Time seemed to slow for Saki as she counted the seconds before the _

_other car impacted._

_1...2...3..._

_Then, the world went black._

* * *

"Saki...saki..."

_Dad? Is that you?_

"Saki... Saki? Saki!" Teru continued shaking her sister. "Saki?"

Saki snapped her head up and looked around. She was breathing hard. _Where am I? Oh...right._

After calming down, she faced Teru.

"Saki you okay? You blanked out for a minute there. We're here now."

"Y-yeah...Just.." _Just got lost in my memories. _

Saki looked in front of her and recognized the gravestone immediately. Wordlessly, she bent down to touch the engraved name. She traced each of the letters.

'_Kai Miyanaga'_

Then, she knelt down and closed her eyes. She felt her sister kneel down beside her.

It started to drizzle.

_Rain? _

Saki paused and stared at the sky in wonder. The swirling gray clouds and the cool, wet sensation of the water droplets hitting her face were so familiar.

_Father. How are you doing? It's been five years...I'm so sorry. You'd probably say it's not my fault just like Onee-chan, but it is my fault. If only...If only I hadn't pushed you to drive faster. You would've seen the incoming car and maybe avoided it. Then, maybe we would both be here today with mom and Onee-chan. We would be a family again and play mahjong together. I don't care about that stupid elementary school national mahjong competition anymore. I want you back. I was stupid and foolish but you were the one who had to pay. I'm so sorry...so sorry. _

Teru gingerly brushed away the tears the flowed down Saki's face, but the tears mixed in with the rain, making them seem endless. _I hope this sadness will end. Saki needs to move on. I'm such a bad sister. You're holding the burden all by yourself, aren't you Saki. I want to help but...I don't know how. Especially since, I can't even fix myself._

Teru couldn't take it anymore. She turned her body to fully face Saki while still kneeling and pulled her sister into a deep hug. Saki buried her head in Teru's shoulder and sobbed. Teru could only hold her sister tighter when she felt the small, frail body shake. She ran her hand through Saki's hair and whispered into her ear.

"It's going to be okay Saki. It's already been five years. You need to move on. Father would like that. He wants you to be happy. Saki…" Teru let a few tears escape from her eyes, but they went unnoticed as they blended in with the rain.

_This unending pain and burden...it has to end. Five years was long enough. This time, the pain will end._

By now the light drizzle turned into a heavy downpour. The two sisters stayed rooted to their spot in front of the gravestone.

"Saki," Teru called out when she felt the shaking had stopped and the sobbing had lessened. "Look at me. Saki."

Slowly and reluctantly, Saki looked up. Teru tried to smile.

"Saki. Look at the flowers." Teru used her chin to point to the bunches of small and delicate white flowers that bloomed near the gravestone. Years back, Saki and her had gathered them from the mountains and planted them here for their father. Now, in the middle of summer, each little flower was in full bloom. Even in the rain, they looked beautiful.

"Saki, do you remember when we were young? I took you to the mountains and showed you these flowers. Do you remember what I told you then?"

Saki nodded slowly. That memory, she will never forget that memory.

* * *

~_Flashback~_

_Her Onee-chan had brought her up into the mountains. They stood side by side, both staring out into the mountains, as they absorbed the scenery of the majestic snowy tops. Onee-chan was wearing a black sleeveless top and had her hands in her pocket while she wore a red hoodie._

"_Rinshan Kaihou? What's that?" asked a young Miyanaga Saki with pigtails. _

"_It's the name of one of the yaku in mahjong. It means 'flower that blooms on top of the mountain,'" replied Teru, still facing the mountains. Saki turned to look at Teru in inquisition._

"_Blooms?" questioned Saki. "That's the same as mine! My name means 'bloom!'" exclaimed a happy Saki._

_This time, Teru turned to face Saki so that dark red eyes met equally dark red eyes and gave her a smile that seemed uncharacteristic of her. _

"_That's right, Saki!" She turned to face the mountains again and Saki copied her. The gentle breeze caressed them. "Even far above the tree line on the tallest of mountains, there are pretty little flowers that bloom." Teru paused._

"_Saki, if you bloom with all your might, just like those flowers…"_

_~End Flashback~_

* * *

_Just like those flowers…._

"Saki." Saki tilted her head upwards and once again, red met red. Teru smiled. It was a small smile, but a real one, one she hasn't shown in years.

"Saki, if you bloom with all your might, just like those flowers..."

…_Yes... I'll be like that flower blooming on the peak._

Saki slowly matched Teru's smile and then suddenly pounced onto Teru, pulling her dear Onee-chan in for another hug.

"Thank you...Onee-chan."

Teru smiled and returned the hug. "You're welcome, my silly little sister." She ruffled the brown hair that she loved so much. _Is this the end after all? Let us both move on, Saki, together, like we've always been._

"Eyyyah!" shrieked Saki. For the first time, she realized how hard it was raining outside and how drenched she and her sister were. "We're completely soaked! I'm so sorry Onee-chan. I didn't realize it was raining so hard. I-"

Teru chuckled. "It's okay Saki. Now come on. We need to get out of this rain." Teru stood up and stretched out her hand, offering it to Saki.

Saki nodded and grabbed onto her sister's hand. Together, they ran out of the rain and into shelter.

"..."

"..."

"..."

"...er...Onee-chan?"

Teru could only stare at the sign. "Lucky...Lucky...Yummy? Why? Why?"

"Why what Onee-chan?" Saki was lost as to why Teru was behaving so weirdly since they stepped into the cafe. It was the first place they found that was open and they quickly ran in to get out of the rain.

"Why...why is it called 'Lucky Lucky Yummy'" questioned a frustrated Teru. _That's what's bothering her?! _Saki raised an eyebrow.

"Eh why? What's wrong with it. I kinda like it," replied Saki. Teru looked at Saki like she had an extra eye.

"It's such a weird name. No? Like who would actually name their cafe something so… so annoyingly cute? It bugs me." Teru crossed her arms and pouted.

"Haha…" Saki scratched her head, confused at what to do. Just then, a voice interrupted them.

"Welcome back, masters."

Saki and Teru turned to face the direction of the new voice. There in front of them, stood a maid dressed in a black and white maid outfit with a short, really short, skirt.

Teru looked around the cafe confused. "This...this is a maid cafe?" She squinted her eyes at the waitress who ducked her head, embarrassed at being scrutinized by the purple haired girl. "So weird," she muttered under her breath. "What is this, an anime?" Saki could only laugh in dryly.

"Uhm, table for two please," Saki said to the waitress.

"Of course, right this way please." The waitress quickly turned around. Saki swore she heard her sigh.

The two settled into a booth, sitting opposite each other, as the waitress handed them a menu while trying to avoid eye contact.

"Saki, what do you want?"

"Uhm. I don't know. I'll have whatever you'll have Onee-chan."

"Hmm okay. Let's see...I'll have…" Teru scanned the menu up and down when a picture caught her eye.

"What is this?" she asked the waitress as she pointed to the menu.

"Ah. We have a taco special today. That is our sweet dessert taco. It contains twenty-three different sweets. It is a great choice, especially if you like sweets," replied the waitress in a very professional tone, but still refusing to meet Teru's eyes.

Teru's eyes lit up, while Saki looked worried. _She won't possibly order this…_

"Twenty-three sweets seems a little too swee-" Saki was caught off.

"I'll take it!" exclaimed Teru.

"Eh?!" gasped Saki. _Why? I knew this would happen. Onee-chan has such an uncontrollable sweet tooth._

"Of course. Excellent choice master." The waitress started to the write down the order. The notepad blocked her face.

"Wait! Make that two! One for me and one for Saki please," said Teru as she raised her hand.

"Eh?! I change my mind Onee-chan. I don't think I can eat such a sweet thing. Just one is enou-" Teru covered Saki's mouth and smiled at the waitress.

"Two please."

"Yes." The waitress scribbled down the order and then ducked her head to hide her blush. She quickly retreated to the chef to place the order. _Damn that smile… She's all wet too. _Her blush turned a darker shade of red. _Stop! Dangerous thoughts! Danger, danger. Emergency brakes._

"Saki," called Teru, once the waitress left while furiously shaking her head. _Weird..._

"Yes?"

"Come over here." Teru gestured Saki to come sit next to her. Confused, Saki slid off of the booth and slid in next to Teru. Teru immediately hugged Saki, surprising her.

"Um. Do you want something Onee-chan?" questioned Saki, who was being squished under her sister's armpits.

Teru shook her head. "No. It's just, we're both super wet from the rain and you might catch a cold. I thought that if we hugged, our body temperature would keep us from freezing."

Saki laughed and hugged her Onee-chan back. They sat like that while waiting for the food.

Suddenly, a voice interrupted their sisterly bonding moment.

"Miyanaga-san!"

Both Teru and Saki turned their attention to the pink-haired girl who was jogging towards their table with a huge smile.

"Yes?" they answered at the same time.

Teru eyed the incoming pinkette. _Huh, she seems familiar...and really happy to see me? Oh! I remember now. She's Saki's friend. The middle school national mahjong champion. Fancy meeting her here. I wonder if she likes sweets...I'm not sharing. _

Nodoka stopped in her tracks. _Did both of them just reply to 'Miyanaga-san'?"_

"Miyanaga-san?" she asked again, looking at Saki with a confused expression.

"Yes?" both Teru and Saki answered at the same time.

"Onee-chan stop it. Stop confusing Haramura-san," Saki whined.

"Haha alright."

"Haramura-san!" Saki called with a big smile. "What a coincidence huh? We meet again."

"Haha yeah," Nodoka replied softly with a small blush and smile. Teru smiled on the inside seeing her sister so happy, though on the outside, her face was as expressionless as ever.

"Ahem." Everyone turned to face a short midget chewing on a taco. "You know them Nodoka?" asked Yuuki.

"Um well, I know the younger Miyanaga-san. I presume the older one is her sister though."

"Yes, I am," was the terse reply. Nodoka and Yuuki felt a chill go down their spines. _Scary._

"Oh, well nice to meet you." Flustered by the older Miyanaga'a aura, Nodoka bowed. _Wow, she feels so different from her younger sister. The younger Miyanaga-san gives off a much more softer and comfortable vibe._

Even Yuuki, who is usually oblivious, felt the slightly colder aura from the older Miyanaga and for once, was wise enough not to butt in with something obnoxious.

_Hmmm. I seemed to have scared Saki's friends. Whoopsies. Oh well haha. _Teru chuckled on the inside.

"Oh, by the way, Haramura-san, I saw you on TV the other day! I watched your match in the finals. You were absolutely amazing! Even Onee-chan complimented you. You played logically and made well calculated moves. The other three were no match against your speed," praised the younger Miyanaga.

Nodoka blushed at the multiple compliments her new friend just all of a sudden threw at her. However, she perked up at the mention of playing style.

"Miyanaga-san. Do you play mahjong?"

Saki was surprised. Even Teru was surprised. Both of them were caught off guard. Mahjong was usually a sensitive topic for the two of them, and Teru was scared how Saki would react. Saki on the other hand was utterly lost. Her eyes cast down to the floor and her hands twisted the hems of her shirt while she bit her lip, trying to think of a reply.

"Eh. Uh.. a little. But I'm not that good at it," Saki finally replied.

"Really? That's great! We should play a game now!" exclaimed Nodoka.

"Eh?!" Before Saki had time to protest, Nodoka took her by the arm and dragged her to the other side of the cafe.

_I didn't know there were mahjong tables here. How oblivious am I? I wonder if Onee-chan noticed._

Teru on the other hand was equally surprised. _Mahjong tables? Really? This cafe is killing me. Just how much weirder can this get? Wait, where are my sweets?_

"Yuuki! Maho! Hiroko! You guys come play too! And your sister, Miyanaga-san. Does your sister play?" inquired Nodoka.

Saki looked at her sister helplessly. Teru shook her head ferociously, signaling Saki to say no. Saki only smiled weakly in return.

"Uh, a little," replied Saki quietly with her eyes glued to the ground. Teru facepalmed. _Curse Saki's honesty. _Reluctantly, because she just couldn't refuse her little sister, she got up from the table and walked towards the mahjong table.

"Okay. There is one empty table," said Nodoka as she looked at the other three occupied tables. Her eyes once again paused on the same table she was looking at earlier, but she just shook the feeling off. "Miyanaga-san and I are playing." Nodoka grabbed Saki's arm to indicate which Miyanaga she was talking about. "Who else wants to play." Nodoka looked over to the older Miyanaga.

Teru just crossed her arms indicating that she did not want to play.

"I will! Prepare to taste the power of the taco djey!" screamed Yuuki.

"I guess I'll play too," Maho volunteered.

"Alright. We can switch out after each game," said Nodoka. "Let's begin!."

The four of them flipped the tiles to choose the seating order. After flipping her tile, Saki sat down and tucked her hands between her thighs. _It's been such a long time since I've touched these tiles. This feeling, I had almost forgotten this feeling._

Nodoka looked over at Saki. Not knowing how familiar Saki is with mahjong, she said, "It's okay if you're a beginner. Maho here is also a beginner though she sometimes has ridiculous beginner's luck."

Saki looked gratefully at Nodoka and blushed. She shook her head. "It's okay. I'll be fine."

Nodoka nodded. "One hanchan starting with 25,000 points each, 30,000 points to break even and no bonus. The game can also end when a player drops below zero. Also, hands above a Yakuman, counted Yakuman(kazoe yakuman), count as yakuman only," she said mainly for the Saki's sake. Nodoka didn't know how much Saki knew about mahjong and was careful in using confusing terminology.

Saki just nodded, showing that she understood.

Game start.

Saki looked at her hand_. Sigh. Why did it have to turn out like this? But, it's been a while. I haven't played mahjong since I was a kid. _Saki observe each of the three other players.

_Now, how should I play? _Saki looked over to her left. _That Yuuki kid has a lot of energy. The flow is bending strongly towards her right now, but I feel like it won't last long. Maybe it's only in the East hand?_

She then glanced at her right. _As for the one called Maho, I don't feel anything from her at all. She's a total beginner. But I feel her luck is pretty high and has a chance of winning with a good hand once or twice in a round. I'll have to watch out for her. _

Finally, she looked up at the person sitting across from her. _Then there's Nodoka. She's obviously more experienced than the other two, but she has a very machine/computer like playing style. Either she's blocking the flow or ignoring it unconsciously. Her computer like playing style won't work on me, but I feel like she's not showing everything she's got. Nevertheless, I'll have to hold back. Now, let's start._

Saki stared at the ton(east) tile in her hand. _Ugh. What should I do with this? Everyone except my family would use this...I'll start with this then. _Saki discarded the ton.

In the third hand, Yuuki suddenly called a chi on the three pin that Nodoka just discarded. She pushed the two pin and four pin along with her newly acquired tile to her left.

_She's fast, just like I thought. I wonder what Onee-chan thinks. _Saki peeked over her left shoulder, where Teru was standing motionless like a statue. _Yikes, Onee-chan has her game face on. I wonder what she sees in her shoumakyo(mirror). _

While Saki was busy thinking, Yuuki had called again. This time, it was a pon on the north tiles. Yuuki followed by discarding a chun tile. _Her discards...there hasn't been a single pin tile. It's mostly sou and man tiles with a couple of honors. I wonder if she's collecting pins and going for a hon itsu(all tiles are in same suit or honors)._

Sure enough, Yuuki called another chi on Maho's six pin tile and discarded a three sou.

_That's already three calls. She should be in tenpai by now. Then, this should be her winning tile. _

Saki reviewed her hand once, before discarding the three of pins.

"Ron! Hon itsu! 2000!" Yuuki wasted no time in calling her winning tile. _Heh, what a newbie. _

Maho looked up in surprise. _Wow, she must be even more of a beginner than I am. Even I knew that Yuuki was collecting pin tiles. It should have been obvious._

Teru raised an eyebrow in interest. _With that hand, Saki could have gotten a tanpin sanshoku for at least four han. _Teru then noticed the small smile that Saki donned. _Heh. I guess old habits die hard eh little sis?_

Round 2.

Saki looked at her hand. _Kokushi musou 13 wait tenpai on the first turn? Man, I forgot how strong my luck was when I play mahjong. _

Saki discarded the 2 of bamboos she just drew. _Now, beginner girl to my right is going to call a pon, and thus changing the drawing order. Come, my winning tile._

A few feet away from the game, Teru stood watching the game like a silent hawk. She could sense that Saki had a huge hand and was going to draw her winning tile soon. _Heh, her luck is as monstrous as ever huh? I wonder what Yakuman it is. Still, seeing how she played last round, I doubt she's going to win with it. What a shame too. I sense it's a pretty hand._

True enough, right after Saki discarded, Yuuki discarded a chun, but Saki ignored the tile, putting her in furiten.

Teru suppressed a smile. _Saki's playing mahjong for the first time since the accident. I don't know Nodoka well, but I feel like she will play a bigger part in Saki's life than she is aware of. They've only met twice, and yet she was able to get Saki to play mahjong. Nodoka is the push Saki needed to move on and bloom. So Saki, bloom, bloom with all your might!_

In the next couple of rounds, Saki won with a few small hands. "Tsumo. Concealed tanyao with one red dora, 3 han 36 fu. That's 6,700 total please." However, Nodoka won most of the hands with a speed nearly as fast as Yuuki's while the girl was in her East round.

After the first game, the scores were:

Nodoka: +33

Saki:+/- 0

Yuuki: -15

Maho:-18

"Tch. I underestimated you, Saki-chan! But, next game, I won't go easy on you! I filled up on tacos earlier. I'll be unstoppable in the east round!"

"Heheh." Saki scratched her head and smiled in lieu of a good response.

The second hanchan began. It went much like the first game. Nodoka again managed to win the most hands. Yuuki was quite powerful in the east round, winning a mangan off of Maho and went into a dealer streak until Nodoka stopped her with a well aimed haneman worth 12,000 points. Even Maho somehow pulled off a mangan tsumo in the east round, but still lost overall. Saki once again won some and lost some, leaving Nodoka slightly confused at how the girl played.

The second game ended like so:

Nodoka: +17

Yuuki: +2

Saki:+/- 0

Maho: -19

"Aww I was so close to beating Nodo-chan this time," whined Yuuki.

"You can win next time," Nodoka comforted her friend. "And Maho,"

"Yes?" Maho jumped up in her seat.

"You've improved a lot since the prefectures."

"Wow, thank you senpai!"

"You know, Saki-chan plays weird," remarked Yuuki. "It seems you know how to count the scores, but you're playing style is a bit weird. There's just something off with how you play. Sometimes, you manage to win with brilliant hands, yet you also fall so easily into any trap." Maho and Nodoka just nodded.

Teru, who was listening while munching on her taco that arrived earlier, smirked. _They still haven't figured it out huh? Saki's leagues above you guys, even the national champion. Though, something still bugs me about her…_

They played a third game, where Saki once again, managed to obtain +/-0.

_That's three in a row. Watching Saki play is kinda making me want to play as well. I promised myself I wouldn't play, but...my hands are itching to touch the tiles all of a sudden. _Teru scanned her eyes around the mahjong area and caught sight of a table where four women currently sat playing a game. _I think I'll ask them for a game when they're done. Am I really ready to play again though? This is Saki's first time playing again and she seems to be having more fun than I've seen her have in a long time. Maybe mahjong is what we needed...to move on._

Nodoka furrowed her eyebrows. Something just didn't feel right about that last game. She could've sworn Yuuki was going to overtake her in the east round when Yuuki declared riichi on the third turn, when all of a sudden Saki called a 'pon'" and thus changing the drawing order. It was most likely coincidence that Yuuki drew the two of sou which was Nodoka's winning tile. However, something seemed off about Saki's call. It did not seem to advance her hand at all. She called as if for the mere act of calling and switching the turn order.

Not only was Saki's playing style beyond comprehensible to Nodoka, but Nodoka also noticed something Saki's scores that even furthered bewildered Nodoka. Three plus minuses in a row?! That seems impossible! Not even top pros would be able to manipulate their scores so well. It must be a coincidence, but it was bothering the heck out of Nodoka. _I need to see if this is a coincidence or not. It does not seem possible. This type of skill...it's ungodly._

"Let's play another game, shall we?" Nodoka suggested. _I need to test her. _The other three merely agreed and rearranged the tiles for a fourth game.

They were in the middle of their fourth game, when a man in the table behind them laughed out loudly.

"Haha looks like I won again!" The guy was in his mid-forties. His laugh was obnoxious and haughty, and it unnerved Nodoka. But being raised up in a well bred family, she kept her composure and consciously ignored him, choosing instead to focus on the game in front of her. _I need to focus to test Miyanaga-san. _

"Haramura-san…." Saki noticed something was bothering Nodoka and tilted her neck a little to see behind Nodoka. She caught a glimpse of the man laughing with both hands on his stomach and looked back to Nodoka's irked expression. It did not seem like such a big deal so Saki decided to let it slide and focus on the game at hand.

"Too bad for you guys, I win again. You guys are seriously just no match for me eh?" the man boasted loudly. His voice carried over clearly and voluminously to Nodoka's table. The man patted his chest and leaned back into his chair. His opponents just slumped down in their chairs and bowed their heads in defeat. The man enjoyed the sight of their crushed spirits and crossed his arms in arrogance. Looking around, he eyed the pretty girl who sat behind him.

"My, my. What do we have here? Aren't you a pretty one? You're pretty good at mahjong for a kid too." taunted the man with an oily grin and suggesting eyes. He had got up from his seat and walked up to right behind Nodoka.

Nodoka felt a chill go down her spine and clenched her teeth. Years of having good manners hammered into her was the only reason she was able to suppress her urge to stand up, turn around, and give the man a good smack on his wrinkly, hard face. Instead she merely replied, "As you can see, I am currently busy with a mahjong game, so please move away. You are disturbing my game."

"Tch. Why you!" He was outraged. He has never been challenged by the other mahjong gamblers he plays with, much less a young middle school girl. The man rolled up his sleeves and clenched his right hand into a fist before he pounded his chest with it. "Listen here, you! I am the best mahjong player in this entire cafe. Remember the name 'Kanagiri' girl. What you little kids play, ain't mahjong. You all are just amateurs playing with luck."

Nodoka bit down, hard. She hated it when people claim mahjong is a game based on luck, not skill. She hears it from her father plenty of times. But to hear it from some arrogant stranger was worse. Nodoka knows she plays well due to her skill and hardwork. She chooses not to believe in superstition. Though luck is a huge part of mahjong, it was not luck that got her through the semi-finals and the finals at the nationals; it was not luck that made her team lose; it was skill. And Nodoka was going to prove it to this man.

She stood up and turned around to face him. She stared at him, hard in the eyes. "I challenge you then, Kanagiri-san, to three east rounds. You can even choose the remaining two players. I'll prove to you just how well, 'kids' can play mahjong." Nodoka was terse, blunt, and poised. And that impressed Saki. _Haramura-san is so cool! _Even Teru was a bit impressed. _This kid's got guts._

"Hmph. Very well. Ya got guts kid. But let me warn you, I play daily at a gambling parlour. I'm not one of your middle school friends. Hell, even the national middle school champion wouldn't be able to touch me."

Nodoka raised an eyebrow. "Oh? We shall see. Choose the other two players, Kanagiri-san."

"I'll play, Haramura-san." The normally meek and shy girl spoke up. Saki looked to Nodoka, who nodded in affirmation. _Should I use this chance to also test Miyanaga-san?_

"Fine by me. I'll beat you punks to below zero." The man grunted as he eyed Saki and scoffed when he decided the kid was not much of a threat.

"Choose the last person then," Nodoka said stiffly.

The man looked around. His eyes landed on Teru, who merely returned his gaze with a cold, reflecting stare. Just then, the man felt like his whole being was being revealed in front of this high school girl and quickly changed where he was looking and spotted the game in the second table over. The table had just finished and the players were lounging about.

"Hey you!" he called. "The one stuffing her face in katsudon." A purple haired girl with a wide forehead looked up. "Yeah you. Come play with us."

The girl raised an eyebrow and put down her katsudon. She swallowed, slowly and eyed the three people she was to play against. Her eyes stopped at the girl with the short brown hair that stuck out in tufts. Red eyes met red eyes. _This could be interesting. _

~TBC~

* * *

yeah sorry for the abrupt ending. idk. Just a couple of quick notes here...

Mitsui was the fifth member of the Takatoobara MS team. I made her up. She plays no role. I just wanted to acknowledge that the MS had five members.

Teru is cute no? haha super tsundere in the manga. Poor waitress was a blushing mess.

Anyways, peace. idk how to continue this tbh. The ending scene was sorta just added on arbitrarily. I mean, who doesn't want to see a kick ass Nodoka.

**Replies**

_Anonymous Cookie: _Thanks! Your encouragement means a lot! Hope to hear more from you in the future. I hope you enjoyed this chapter as well.

_Veins Simply Tired:_ Teehee I did have a good day thanks to your comment Veins. :D Thanks for the support. Hope you'll continue to read and offer your thoughts(though I have no pennies). And btw, I just want to say, I love your story, "Of Hopes and Wishes." It was one of the reasons I was motivated enough to write my own story.

Alright, I've said too much. Peace. Till next time fellas


	4. Manipulation

**Vocabulary**

**(all the vocab used in this chapter minus the more obvious ones)**

**they are in no specific order**

_Tiles_

pin-circles

sou-bamboo

wan-characters

chun-red dragon

hatsu-green dragon

haku-white dragon

ton-east

nan-south

sha-west

pei-north

_Yaku_

chiitoitsu(2 han 25 fu)-7 pairs

honroutou(4 han 25 fu)-7 pairs, all terminals or honors

pinfu(1 han)-all sequences

iipeikou(1 han)-2 identical sequences

toitoi(2 han)-all triplets

sanankou(2 han)-three closed triplets

tanyao(1 han)-no honors or terminals

yakuhai(1 han each)-triplet/quad of honor tiles and player's wind or prevailing wind

shousangen(three little dragons, 4 han)-two triplets/quads of dragons, plus a pair of the third.

daisangen(three big dragons, yakuman)-three triplets/quads of dragons

honitsu(half flush, 3 han)-one suit plus terminals or honors

chinitsu(full flush, 6 han)-one suit, no terminals or honors

tenhou(heavenly hand, yakuman)-dealer's first 14 tiles completes a hand

tenpai-one away from a winning hand

isshanten-one away from tenpai

**Warning**

Warning: A lot more detail into the mahjong games they play. Tell me if it's too confusing or it's too much. I just learned how to play mahjong last week so if there are mistakes, comment them down. These next few chapters are going to have a lot of mahjong in them. Tell me if you want me to shorten the details.

Enjoy. :D

* * *

__  
Fujita scanned the table while chowing down a bowl of katsudon. She had decided not to introduce herself to her opponents, opting to hurry on with the game instead. _It's better that they don't know who I am anyways. I will be able to play more freely. Hmmm. I wonder if I should hold back or not. I'm against two kids and a middle aged man. The man doesn't seem like a threat. He just has a big mouth. His control over the table seems nonexistent. The two kids on the other hand...they're harder to read. But they don't seem to be much of a threat either. Guess I'll have to hold back for these games. Don't want to make them cry. _

_"_I'm not going to hold back just because you're kids now." The man challenged Nodoka.

"Of course. And I'm definitely not going to let you win," replied Nodoka.

_Well, well. Aren't they confident?_ She eyed the two that just spoke. Her eyes however drifted to the other young girl with red eyes. They lingered on her for a second. If_ they aren't going to hold back, I guess I shouldn't either. I'll observe during the first few hands and then comeback at the end like I always do. Just wait, they don't call me I the 'reversal queen' for nothing._

**East 1 Dealer Kanigiri**

_Seating_

East: Kanigiri

South: Saki

West: Fujita

North: Nodoka

_Scores_

Kanigiri: 25000

Saki: 25000

Fujita: 25000

Nodoka: 25000

Saki looked peeked at the two new opponents. The man did not seem to be much of a threat. He had a big mouth but little to support it. The purple haired woman did not introduce herself and just merely sat down and ordered a bowl of katsudon._ She's…weird. Who wears collars nowadays anyways?_ However, she seemed to be extremely skilled. Saki could tell that the woman is definitely well experienced. _She should be the best player sitting here at the table._ _I need to be wary of her. My goal in these games is to help Haramura-san as best as I can. She is the one who has something to prove. I need to help her without being too obvious. _

Kanigiri rolled the dice and flipped the dora indicator. It was a nan.

Saki noticed the man's slight grin as he flipped his hand up._ He must have a good starting hand._ She looked over to Nodoka. Nodoka on the other hand did not seem to have a good draw, maybe six tiles away from being in tenpai.

Kanigiri resisted the urge to smile. He did indeed have a good draw. _And the fun begins._ His hand consisted of:

2 pin, 2 pin, 3 pin, 5 pin, 7 pin 7 pin, 6 sou, 6 sou, 9 sou, 3 wan, 9 wan, 9 wan, chun, nan

_Let's see. I already have four pairs. I could go for a chiitoitsu(7 pairs) or a toitoit(all triplets or quadruples). _He discarded the nan on his first turn. Saki followed by discarding a 5 pin; Fujita responded by discarding a 9 wan.

The man stayed silent. _Should I call for a pon? But that will open my hand. I want to stay concealed for now. __Guess I'm going for a chiitoitsu. _

Nodoka discarded a ton.

Just like Saki had perceived, Nodoka was having a harder time forming a hand together.

Nodoka could feel the gears in her head turning as she went over all the possible moves and hands to consider. _This is a bad start. I'm now five tiles away from tenpai. I hope I can catch up. I'm going to show that man. I didn't become the national middle school champion based on luck. All players get bad breaks. I just need to get over this hand. I can turn this around maybe. But Miyanaga-san...that discard of 5 ton was quite random. Most people would discard a honor or terminal tile on the first turn...unless she has no other man tiles. She could be going for a chiinitsu or a honitsu. _

Nodoka looked at her hand.

2 pin, 3 pin, 4 pin, 6 pin, 4 sou, 7 sou, 7 sou, 1 wan, 3 wan, 5 wan, 5 wan, 7 wan, nan, nan

_I will discard the 7 wan on the next turn. That leaves the most options to get into tenpai. _As the next turn came around, Nodoka promptly discarded the 7 wan after drawing a 5 pin. _Okay, this is getting better. I can do this. _She glared at the man sitting next to her.

Kanigiri was having trouble deciding which tile to discard. He had discarded the 9 sou two turns ago, copying Fujita's previous discard, and a nan last turn. The new draws left him with:

2 pin, 2 pin, 3 pin, 5 pin, 7 pin 7 pin, 6 sou, 6 sou, 8 sou, 6 wan, 9 wan, 9 wan, chun, chun

_I have a single 3 pin, 5 pin, 8 sou, and 6 man. I should probably discard the 5 pin since that girl with the brown hair already discarded one on her first time. By discarding the 5 pin, I am left with more available tiles to complete my pairs. _He slammed the 5 pin down on the table and glared to Saki whose turn was next. Saki merely smiled. And for some reason, the smile unnerved him.

After three more turns, Kanigiri drew another 5 man. It was the red dora. _Ughhh_. He grit his teeth. _That totally backfired. _He looked at his hand. He had drawn two 6 pins in a row. If he'd kept his 5 pin, he would have an iipeikou on the 5, 6, and 7 pin as well as a red dora.

2 pin, 2 pin, 5 pin (dora) 6 pin, 6 pin, 7 pin, 7 pin, 6 sou, 6 sou, 8 sou, 9 wan, 9 wan, chun, chun

_Should I discard the 8 sou and wait for the last 5 pin? It's a single hell wait. _He shook his head. _I need to play it safe. There are three more 8 sous out there. I'm going to have to discard this dora._

"Riichi," he declared after slamming the red dora sideways. Saki immediately followed by discarding the last 5 pin.

_Why that little...Why do I get the feeling I'm being played. There's the freaking last 5 pin tile. She was hogging it. Tsk. Whatever. She can't hold me back now. _He drew another tile. It was not the 8 sou. _So no ippatsu huh? No biggie. My hand will still be worth 4 han and 25 fu. _

Saki, who donned a small smile this entire time, inwardly sighed. _Sorry Haramura-san. I can't exert too much control without being obvious. The first win is going to go to him._

She watched as the man drew another tile. _That should be his winning tile. _

"Tsumo! Riichi concealed chiitoitsu. 3200 all." He flipped his hand over. _Humph. These kids got nothing. That woman with the weird purple hair doesn't seem all that strong either. This'll be an easy three hanchans. _"That was an easy win."

"The game is not over yet," deadpanned Nodoka.

"Very well girlie."

Nodoka was fuming. _Geez. I can't believe he has the nerve to brag after winning with such a cheap hand. I'm going to show him._

**East 1 Bonus 1 Dealer Kanigiri**

Kanigiri: 34,600

Saki: 21,800

Fujita: 21,800

Nodoka: 21,800

Nodoka's eyes focused intensely at the fourteen tiles in front of her. It was a good hand. I_ am going to win this one. Just watch me, Miyanaga-san. I will show him. I will show him just how well I play!_

Saki's eyes widened. A faint breeze blew across the mahjong table. Saki felt a faint trace of a familiar aura. She felt warm. It was the same feeling she got in the park, right before she met Haramura-san. _No way. _Her head whipped toward Haramura-san. _Is it her? _Saki smiled knowingly. _Haramura-san really is amazing._

"Riichi!"

Kanigiri felt a chill run down his spine. _Already?! It's only the third turn! I'm still 3 tiles from isshanten. Her luck must be strong this turn. That brat. Whatever it's going to take more than just luck to beat me._

Fujita paused mid chew, the hand holding chopsticks was suspended mid air between the bowl and her mouth. _Oh? What's happening now?_

"Tsumo!" Nodoka slammed the tile against the edge of the table. "Riichi ippatsu concealed pinfu with 1 red dora."

Saki smiled while Fujita raised an eyebrow in interest.

"2000/4000 plus the bonus please," said Nodoka in her robotic voice. She glared at Kanigiri after flipping over her tiles.

_6w, 7w, 8w_

_4s, 5s, 6s,_

_9s, 9s_

_2p, 3p, 4p_

_3p, 4p, 5p(red dora)_

Saki couldn't stop herself from grinning. She could feel the new presence. It was the presence of an angel. Saki was not at all surprised to see wings sprouting from Haramura's back. _Angel wings. _And in the presence of the birth of an angel, Saki could only stare in awe. _This is the middle school champion, Haramura Nodoka! _

Kanigiri was less impressed by the win. _Tch. She has the nerve to get a mangan? "_Hah. You got lucky kid. But it's going to take a lot more than lucky hands to beat me. Kids like you will never beat me."

Nodoka furrowed her eyebrow but refused to say a word in response. She remained calm and poised.

Saki was less so. She was furious. _What kind of an attitude is that? Haramura-san is an amazing player. So what if she's a kid. I'm not going to let a man like you win this.__ This next hand is MINE._

**East 2 Dealer Saki**

Kanigiri: 30,500

Saki: 19,700

Fujita: 19,700

Nodoka: 30,100

Saki took a deep breath and paused with her eyes closed. _My turn to be dealer. _She flipped up her tiles and looked them over. She smirked. _Geez. I ask and the tiles respond. But I'll have to hit him directly, and only him, so that Haramura-san can widen her lead in first place. Winning with a self-draw is not ideal._

Her hand:

2 sou, 2 sou, 4 wan, 5 wan(red dora), 6 wan, 3 hakus(white dragon), 3 chuns(red dragon), 3 hatsus(green dragon)

_Tsumo... a daisangen tsumo. And not just a tsumo, but a tenhou. I didn't even have to draw or discard any tiles. It's a freaking kazoe(counted) yakuman. But if I call it, it'll bring Haramura's score down as well. I need to make sure Nodoka stays on top and keeps her lead. I'll have to give up my kazoe yakuman in order to get a direct ron on Kanigiri-san and take away his points. I need to form another hand. Let's see, which tile should I discard to target him directly? _Saki closed her eyes.

Nodoka looked over to Saki wondering why the girl was taking so long. Saki looked to be in deep thought. _Does she have a bad starting hand and need to think?_

Fujita raised an eyebrow as she eyed the brown haired girl. _What is she about to do? I feel like something has suddenly changed. The mood suddenly changed. I wonder if it's because of her…_

Kanigiri on the other hand was less interested and more impatient. He huffed. _Geez. What's taking her so long to think? It's only the first turn. What a beginner. Hurry up._

After ten still seconds, Saki suddenly opened her eyes. She donned a soft smile on her face. Teru smirked. _That smile on Saki's face means bad news. I feel bad for the man. He's not going to know what hit him._

Moving quickly, Saki discarded one of the hatsus(green dragon). On the next turn, she drew a one sou and discarded another hatsu. On the next, she drew a three sou and discarded another hatsu, leaving only one hatsu left in her hand. Her hand now looked like this:

3 hakus(white dragons), 3 chuns(red dragon), 1 hatsu(green dragon), 4 wan, 5 wan(red dora), 6 wan, 1 sou, 2 sou, 2 sou, 3 sou

Saki discarded the extra 2 sou. _Tenapi. I managed to change my daisangen hand into a shousangen tenpai in only three turns. The tiles are really responding to my favor. If my readings of the board are accurate, Haramura will call Kanigiri's 2 pin on the next turn for an open pon. She should be going for a honitsu toitoi judging on her discards. She hasn't discarded a single pin tile. Her call will change the drawing order, causing Kanigiri to draw the last hatsu, which he will think is safe to discard. _

Saki's smile widened the slightest bit. _Sadly, he will be wrong._

Saki looked at her two hands. They were trembling. Her hands wouldn't stop shaking from the adrenaline of playing mahjong again. _This is fun. Mahjong is fun again. I remember now, how we used to play as a family. I would always play barefooted and my feet would never reach the ground when I sat down on the chair. Back then I even had to stand on the chair to draw the tiles. _Saki clenched her hands into fists. _Onee-chan, thank you. Haramura-san, thank you. Father...this is it. I will continue blooming again._

Kanigiri observed the discards. _ That pink haired girl called a pon on one of my discards. The call caught me off guard a bit. I can't let her pull off another win like last round. This tile should be safe though. _He glanced at the tile he just drew. _It should be safe. The brown haired girl discarded two of them already in a row. She didn't discard her drawn tiles so the two hatsus were from her starting hand. I don't know why she would ever give up the chance for a yakuhai but she did. There's only one other one left. It would be a single hell wait. I should be able pass this turn safely. _

_"_Ron!"

Kanigiri snapped his head up, eyes wide in disbelief. _But she already discarded this tile! Twice! How could this be her winning tile? She discarded two of them and kept one? She purposely threw away a yakuhai?! Did she know I would draw the last one? What the frick!_

Saki revealed her hand.

_1 sou, 2 sou, 3 sou_

_4 wan, 5 wan(red dora), 6 wan_

_3 hakus(white dragon)_

_3 chuns(red dragon)_

_2 hatsus(green dragon)_

"Shousangen with one red dora. 8,000 please."

Kanigiri's eyes widened even further. _A shousangen?! Why didn't she keep the other hatsus? It would've been a daisangen! She could've gotten more points. Did she give up the yakuman on purpose? Is this kid crazy or stupid?! _

Saki happily received the point sticks from the man. _Hehe, now Haramura-san's lead over the man has increased. _

Fujita furrowed her eyebrows. _This kid plays hella weird. Based on her discards, she seemed to be in tenpai for a daisangen in the first turn! No…__She didn't once discard her drawn tile meaning…S__he had drawn the winning tile by the first turn but passed on it! She had a tenhou! However instead of calling it, she changed her pair of two sous into a chi with the one and three sou. She discarded two of the hatsus and kept one, making it a single hell wait. Did she know that man was going to draw the last one? Is she targeting him? That's the only reason I can think of for her to sacrifice her daisangen yakuman for a lower valued hand worth only five han. What is she planning? Her play makes no sense!_

**East 2 Bonus 1 Dealer Saki**

Kanigiri: 22,500

Saki: 27,700

Fujita:19,700

Nodoka: 30,100

Saki looked at the scoreboard. _Hm...what should I do next? Sorry Haramura-san, but I'm going to have to take first place temporarily. I want to whittle his points down some more. _Saki aimed for a cheap, fast win off a Kanigiri.

"Ron. Concealed tanpin(tanyao+pinfu) ippeikou. That's 5,800 plus the bonus, which is 6,100."

Kanigiri glared at the Saki's revealed hand.

_2p, 3p, 4p_

_6p, 7p, 8p, _

_2s, 2s, 3s, 3s, 4s, 4s(iipeikou)_

_2w, 2w_

His 6 pin discard gave her the win. _It was only the 8th turn. This girl is sure quick. I can't believe she caught me again. This is infuriating. I cannot believe I am losing to a bunch of middle schoolers. And this woman..._He glared at Fujita, who was on her fifth bowl of katsudon…._she's worse than me! She hasn't done a thing! At this rate, us adults are going to be blown away by a couple of kids! Ughhh! I am not going to allow this. Next hand, is mine!_

Fujita, who was _finally_ done eating, _finally _focused on the game. _Alright, time to get started on my comeback. No one is going to be able to win a single hand from now on. First, I need to stop this girl from going on a dealer streak. Never thought I'd say this against some kids but, this is going to be fun. _Fujita took off her hand leather bracelet. _Time to get serious. _Fujita smirked.

**East 2 Bonus 2 Dealer Saki**

Kanigiri: 16,400

Saki: 33,800

Fujita: 19,800

Nodoka: 29,800

Saki eyed the katsudon eating woman warily. Something has changed in the atmosphere around this table and Saki could tell it was because of the katsudon woman. She had "awakened." Unfortunately unlike her sister, Saki didn't have the ability to see through the woman's playing style. The woman hadn't made a single move and Saki felt like the woman was purposely observing them out of interest. _I wonder what Onee-chan sees in her shoumakyo. _Saki glanced behind her. Teru's face was emotionless and gave away nothing. Her eyes seemed far away. _Actually, I wonder if Onee-chan is awake. I hope she didn't fall asleep standing._

Teru was not asleep. No, she was very much awake. She could see what kind of a player that katsudon eating woman is, and it excited her. She wanted to play, badly. Her fingers were itching was an urgent hunger. She just didn't show it. The woman, according to her shoumakyo, the katsudon woman was good. She was pro level good. Her style is one that relies on huge comebacks, meaning so far, the woman had been holding back. The real show should be beginning very soon...

'Riichi!"

Kanigiri perked up. _So that katsudon eating pig is finally doing something eh? Well, too late for her. I'm in tenpai for a sanshouku with a two sided wait. Time to show those two middle schoolers how a real adult plays. _

"Riichi ippatsu tsumo pinfu. That'll be 1,200/2,200 with the two bonuses."

Kanigiri almost slammed his fist on the table. _Why the heck is this happening?! I, the great Kanigiri, am being beaten by two kids and crazy katsudon eating woman. This is just bad luck. Calm down. Their luck can't last forever. I just need to play like normal and I will be fine. _

**East 3 Dealer Fujita**

Kanigiri: 15,200

Saki: 31,600

Fujita: 24,400

Nodoka: 28,600

Fujita smirked. _Finally, my turn as dealer. Time to go on a winning streak. _

Saki was slightly concerned. _The flow is really attracted to Fujita right now. It's flowing strongly in her favor. I can't let her win as dealer and allow her to go on a winning streak. I need to stop her now. I need to help Haramura-san win. I need to do it without being too obvious too. That woman is no ordinary mahjong player. Her insight of the table is very precise. I can tell she saw through me two turns ago. Though I don't think she knows my reason yet. I'll have to be careful during this next hand._

Saki once again closed her eyes.

Fujita's own eyes narrowed in suspicion. _That girl__ closed her eyes again. I need to be careful. _Fujita started the game.

"Chi!" Eleven turns in, Saki suddenly called a chi on Nodoka's discard of the 8 pin.

Fujita was suspicious. The call seemed to be meaningless and random.

"Pon!" Another call. This time, it was on Nodoka's 2 wan. Another seemingly meaningless call.

Fujita wracked her brain for answers. _This is not making sense. Why is she calling so recklessly? Is she merely a beginner? She doesn't seem to be. That mangan two hands ago was no accident, even if she did give up a daisangen. The calls don't seem to be advancing her hand. Yet, she's still smiling. I'm quite wary of that smile now. There's no point in calling those tiles...unless...her purpose is to change the drawing order. But how will that help her? Her calls revealed her cheap hand. _Fujita's eyes widened. She realized too late.

"Tsumo! Honroutou. 1,600/3,200 please." Nodoka revealed her hand.

_1p, 1p_

_9p, 9p_

_ 1w, 1w_

_ton, ton_

_ sha, sha_

_haku, haku_

_chun, chun_

It was a chiitoitsu of all honors or terminals; in other words, it was a honroutou. It is quite a rare yaku to get and is worth 4 han and 25 fu. Nodoka was surprised. She's never gotten a honroutou before. She didn't try to get one this hand either. It just sort of happened.

Fujita let one corner of her mouth dip down slightly. _I was tricked. Here I was, thinking that girl was calling to advance her own hand. Instead, she was calling to help the other girl. By calling, she Ms. Angel here two extra draws, while skipping my turn. _Fujita shook her head while smiling ruefully. _Haha. I can't believe I got tricked by a kid. Though...she doesn't play like a kid. _Fujita looked over to Saki. _No she definitely does not play mahjong like a kid._

**East 4 Dealer Nodoka**

Kanigiri:13,600

Saki: 30,000

Fujita: 21,200

Nodoka: 35,000

Nodoka pursed her lips. _This is it. The last round. I'm currently in first right now, so I just need a quick, cheap hand to win this east round. _

Fujita inwardly sighed. _I guess I really can't hold back, even if it's with a bunch of kids and an arrogant, bratty man. _She closed her eyes and relaxed her shoulders. When she opened her eyes, she seemed to have become an entirely different person. The atmosphere around the mahjong table changed once again.

Saki tilted her head and tugged at her lip gently with her teeth. That woman meant trouble. Her control of the flow seemed to have magnified. Saki could feel the woman's aura seeping into her soul as well as the mahjong table and taking control of the tiles. That woman's aura was scary. It reminded Saki of her Onee-chan. It incited similar emotions in Saki as when she played Teru. She felt the fear of being trapped, and the fear of being hunted by a predator. Saki would be unable to exert much influence on the flow without leaking too much of her own aura. _She's going to win this round. I can't change that without exerting my own control over the tiles but my presence would be way too obvious to that woman and I really want to lay low for now. I just started playing mahjong again after more than five years. I don't know if I would be able to keep my aura in check. It would be too dangerous. I can't stop her from winning…but I can sort of manipulate how she wins. I'm sorry Haramura-san, but this is going to be a big blow no matter what. I'll try to lessen it. _

_"_Pon!" Saki slid Nodoka's discard of the 2 pin with her own 2 pins to the corner of the table.

Fujita raised an eyebrow and smirked. _Oh? Randomly calling tiles again aren't we? Well, it won't work this time. I won't fall for the same trick twice. _

_"_Pon!" Fujita called for the discard of the 3 wan that Saki just discarded. _Two can play at that game._

Saki was taken back for a second. _Interesting. Now that she's called and changed the drawing order...I want to see what she will do this next turn. It all depends on Haramura-san now. _

Nodoka looked at her drawn tile, the 4 pin. It seemed to be safe. Saki had an open pon on the two pins, and there were two three pins and one four pin in the discards. There were no 4 pins on the table so it is a new tile. Unless someone was hogging the other three 4 pins or was waiting for the 4 pin for a triplet, she should be safe. But no one seemed to be in tenpai yet, so she discarded it. The worst that could happen was for the tile to get called for a chi or a pon.

"Kan!" Nodoka's eyes widened. She didn't take that into consideration. Calling kans can be very reckless. She herself never considers calling a kan, much less an open kan.

Saki smiled. _Very interesting._

Fujita pushed the four 4 pins to the edge of the table. Time seem to slow as Fujita reached for the dead wall. She slowly retracted her hand after drawing the tile, before quickly slamming it against the edge of the table.

"Tsumo! Tanyao(1 han), Yakuhai(1 han), Toitoi(2 han), dora 3 (3 han) , rinshan kaihou(1 han). With the rule of the 'the responsible one pays' on open kans, that'll be 16,000 please."

Fujita shivered as a chill went down her spine. _I had managed to win a comeback like usual but why did that win feel so…different? I have a very eerie feeling right now. Something's not right. Why am I scared? Who am I scared of? _Fujita looked around the table. The pink haired girl seemed to be slightly upset she lost, but nothing else. The man is also frustrated he lost, but he had no evil aura. The girl with the red eyes…she was smiling while looking straight at…_me. _Another chill went down Fujita's spine as she quickly averted her eyes. She looked back at Saki who was still smiling but was too busy trying to cheer up Nodoka. _Was it just my imagination just now? The feeling's gone. That girl..._

**Final Scores:**

Kanigiri: 13,600

Saki: 30,000

Fujita: 37,200

Nodoka: 19,000

"Tch. It was only because of that katsudon woman over there that I lost to you kids. I had a comeback hand waiting that would've crushed you kiddies." The man crossed his arms. "I'll prove to you in these next two east rounds that kids can't play mahjong."

Saki across the table to Nodoka out of concern, but Nodoka didn't respond. She showed no signs of agitation from the man's comments. She was too preoccupied with the scores. _Miyanaga-san… She ended up with 30,000 points. It's plus minus zero again…Wait! In the past three games, Miyanaga-san not only managed to obtain plus minus zero, but her final score was always 30,000! To get plus minus zero, you would have to score between 29,600 and 30,400 because the scores round to the nearest thousandth, but Miyanaga-san…she managed to get perfect plus minus zeroes all four times! This type of luck is insane! This is too much of a coincidence! _

Nodoka fixated her eyes on the girl sitting across from her. _Miyanaga-san..._

* * *

~TBC~

**_Author's Note:_**

So, idk if you guys would like the way I presented the mahjong games. Comment your thoughts please. I tried to make it easy to understand, but I can't guaranteed I did an okay job. Would you guys rather I stuck with the japanese terminology or the english names? And does stating explicitly how many han and fu each hand is counted as help? Were all the details too boring?

Thoughts? Questions? Comments? Suggestions? Angry criticisms?

Edit!: Okay, that shousangen that Saki wins in the third round is not legal. She's in furiten. Thank you Gu3st for pointing that out.

**_Replies_**

**Vein's Simply Tired**: Lol I warned you it was going to seem a bit crack-ish. Hopefully this chapter was less so. And yes, making original mahjong games are horrendous. If only Saki didn't play plus minus zero. lol but where's the fun in that?

**Gu3st:** Sorry it was confusing. Hopefully, it'll be less so in the future. :D Thanks for commenting.

peace

~Sosh


	5. Cleared Skies and Promises

**2nd Match**

**East 1 Dealer Kanigiri**

Kanigiri: 25,000 (East)

Saki: 25,000 (South)

Fujita: 25,000 (West)

Nodoka: 25,000 (North)

Saki glanced over to Fujita**. **_That woman. Her_ _last win against Haramura-san...She really is on a whole different level._ Fujita caught Saki's eyes and immediately turned her head. Saki just raised an eyebrow. _Weird. Why do I feel like she's avoiding my eyes?_

"Roll the dice." Fujita reminded the man who was too busy fuming to start the game.

"R-right." He leaned forward in his chair to push the button.

Fujita looked at her hand. She rested her cheek on her fist. She inwardly sighed. _So the two kids are trying to prove to the man that kids can play mahjong huh? I probably shouldn't __butt in then._ She let her eyes drift from Haramura to Miyanaga. I_ thought it was weird how these two kids would play mahjong with a man like that. I probably should've asked about the situation before just plopping down and playing mahjong. I didn't even introduce myself! Ah whatever. Too late now. Guess I'm just going to sit out this hand and watch. But being an observer is so bor-_

"Tsumo!"

Fujita snapped out of the daze. The pinkette next to her was the first to draw blood. _And it was only 4 turns in. Fast._

"800/1600."

**1,1,1, 9,9,9 wan 2,2, 8,8,8 pin 1,1,1 sou**

_A stealth win. It was hidden very well. Fast too. _Fujita glanced at Haramura. _She didn't seem like much but..._

**East 2 Dealer Saki**

Kanigiri: 23,400

Saki: 24,200

Fujita: 24,200

Nodoka: 28,200

"Riichi!" Nodoka threw her riichi stick onto the table and glared at anyone who dared to meet her eyes, challenging them.

_She's fast! It's only the 5th turn. _Kanigiri's hand twitched as he discarded his tile. _She wasn't this fast before. What's going on? _The sound of a tile being slammed against the table broke him out of his thoughts. His head snapped up at the monotonic voice.

"Riichi Ippatsu Tsumo." Nodoka revealed her hand.

**2, 2, 2, 3, 3, 3 pin 1, 2, 3, 9, 9, 9 sou sha, sha**

"1,300/2,600."

_Haramura-san is in the groove..._

**East 3 Dealer Fujita**

Kanigiri: 22,100

Saki: 21,600

Fujita: 22,900

Nodoka: 33,400

It was already the 17th turn, yet no one had made a single call or move.

Kanigiri glared at the pinkette. _What? No fast riichi this time? Guess it was only luck huh? _However, Kanigiri was unable to get into tenpai himself. _I'm in isshanten. I need either a 2 sou or a 5 sou to complete my sequence and a 7 wan to complete a triplet. All three of tiles have not been discarded before so where are they?!_

The hand ended in a draw.

Nodoka revealed her hand. _So close. _"Tenpai."

"Tenpai."Fujita revealed her hand.

"Noten." Kanigiri declared frustratedly. _I can't believe I was stuck in isshanten the entire time._

Saki looked at Kanigiri before looking at her hand while smiling slightly.

**1, 2, 2, 2, 2, 3, 4, 5, 5, 5, 5 sou 7, 7 wan**

She had a closed kan of the 2 sou, and the 5 sou. She also had a pair of 7 wan. She was waiting on a 6 pin and was in tenpai. _I don't want to make that guy any madder than he already is. He would flip if he knew I had all of his needed tiles._ "Noten." She turned her tiles faced down.

**East 3 Bonus 1 Dealer Fujita**

Kanigiri: 20,600

Saki: 20,100

Fujita: 24,400

Nodoka: 34,900

Kanigiri had hoped that last hand's draw meant that the pinkette with the big boobs had slowed down, but to his dismay, he was wrong.

"Riichi!"

_Gahhh. I feel like tearing my hair out. What the heck is with her and her fast hands? Is she cheating?!_

Saki smiled. _A riichi on the second turn!_Haramura-san_ is really amazing. _Saki looked up at Nodoka. Nodoka met Saki's gaze, and Saki felt herself blush. She quickly averted her eyes back to her hand.

Unbeknownst to Saki, Nodoka kept her gaze steady on the head of brown hair. _Miyanaga-san I will break your plus __minus zero streak. I will not let anyone else win. No one else shall win a single hand this match._

Nodoka reached for the tile, and time seemed to slow for Saki. The world spun and all she could see was Haramura-san._ Haramura-san__…_Nodoka seemed to sprout wings and take flight into the air. Her beautiful wings brought her high into the sky and out of Saki's reach.

"Tsumo!" Nodoka slammed the tile against the table and tipped her hand over. White feathers erupted from the tiles.

**2, 3, 4 wan 2, 3, 4, 8, 8, 8 pin 2, 3, 4 sou hatsu, hatsu**

"Riichi sanshouku menzen tsumo dora."

"2,100/4,100."

Saki snapped out of her daydream. She glanced at Nodoka. Nodoka did not have wings and looked like she usually does. _Did I just imagine that?_

_My, my. _Fujita smirked. _This pinkette has quite the speed and skill for her age. And she's on her way to a perfect game. No one but her has won and it's already the last round. Will she be able to pull it off?_

**East 4 Dealer Nodoka**

Kanigiri: 18,500

Saki: 18,000

Fujita: 20,300

Nodoka: 43,200

Nodoka let out a relieved sigh. _One more hand. Just one more. If I can win this hand, not only would I have beaten that no mannered man, but I would have also broken Miyanaga-san's ridiculous plus minus zero streak. Just one more hand._

"Kan!" Saki revealed the four sha tiles in her hand and reached for the dead wall. Nodoka's eyes widened. It was almost like deja vu.

Time around the table seemed to slow as the pressure increased..

Nodoka was tense with anticipation, though she didn't know why. Fujita felt herself holding her breath as she watched Saki slowly reach for the tile. _Are those…white flowers? _

Saki raised the tile she just drew high above her head and closed her eyes. Without even opening her eyes, she slammed the tile against the edge with a soft smile.

"Tsumo." Saki opened her eyes and Fujita could have sworn there was fire blazing in those red eyes.

"Honitsu, toitoi, yakuhai, rinshan kaihou. 3000/6000"

_7 han…A haneman!_

**End Scores**

**1st** Nodoka: 37,200

**2nd** Saki: 30,000

**3rd** Fujita: 17,300

**4th** Kanigiri: 15,500

Fujita was no idiot. She learned how to recognize patterns long ago in elementary school and was definitely not blind to them. She's a freaking pro mahjong player for crying out loud. Recognizing patterns is what she does for a living. There was no way it was a coincidence. _Coincidences like this don't __happen._

"Um excuse me." Fujita tried to address the pinkette. _I really should have asked for introductions before going straight into mahjong. _

"Hm?" Nodoka looked at Fujita to acknowledge her.

"If you don't mind me asking, but I saw you and her," she nodded in Saki's direction, "playing together with two other kids earlier. I was just a bit curious of the scores. Do you mind if I look at them if you have them recorded?"

Teru, who has been watching this whole time, bit her lip to stop the incoming smile from filling her face. _So they had finally figured it out huh? They're about to find out just how badly they've been played. When playing Saki, it doesn't matter who wins, because in the end, it's always Saki who manages the bigger achievement. I need to move. I want to see katsudon-san's face when she realizes. Keke. _

Nodoka inwardly sighed. She knew exactly what katsudon-san was implying. She closed her eyes in annoyance and turned her head sideways. "If you're asking about Miyanaga's scores…Yes in all three games, she scored exactly 30,000, a perfect plus minus zero every single time. She did it twice again just now. That's five perfect plus minus zeroes in a row. And all I would like to know is…" Nodoka opened one of her eyes and looked across the table to meet Saki's. Blue clashed with red.

"What are you playing at Miyanaga-san?"

"Uh…huh?"

"This perfect plus minus zero playing…is such a thing even possible?"

Saki could only offer a weak smile before looking down and twiddling with her hands. Her cheeks were bright red. She was completely flustered.

Fujita could only shake her head slightly._ Who would have a thought that such a thing was even possible. I never knew it could be done. To even aim for a plus minus zero is ridiculous. Mahjong is about winning. Yet this girl… Miyanaga..._She let her eyes linger on the shy brunette

"Miyanaga-san. Why…why do you play like that?" Nodoka's voice demanded a clear answer.

"Um..I don't know. Whenever I play, it just somehow always ends up like that," came the meek reply. Teru could only shake her head. _Still as shy as ever huh Saki._

Nodoka was not satisfied with the answer and continued glaring at Saki. Saki almost started shaking under the intense gaze. _Haramura-san is scary. Really. Scary._

"Well…when I was little, I got punished for winning too much and for losing too much. So before I knew it, I started playing plus minus zero…"

Saki was too scared to look Haramura-san in the eyes.

The sound of a chair screeching against wood made her look up at Nodoka.

Nodoka had stood up. She looked to Yuuki.

"I'm going home." With that, she rushed out of the cafe and into the pouring rain.

"Nodo-chan! Wait!" Yuuki started after her but Saki beat her to it. Teru held Yuuki back with just a glance. "Let my sister handle this."

Yuuki could only hesitantly nod her head while still looking outside with concerned eyes. "Nodo-chan will be alright…she's strong."

"In the mean time…" Teru looked at the mahjong table where Fujita and Kanigiri still sat. "I believe there's still one more east game left am I right?"

Fujita and Kanigiri both hesitantly nodded their heads, still lost from what unfolded earlier.

"I hope you don't mind me taking my sister's spot." Teru's voice was high and sweet sounding. However, Fujita was not fooled. The girl who stood in front of her was no regular, sweet little girl. _If the younger sister can play plus minus zero, then I'm looking forward to seeing what the older one can do._

"Not at all. Come sit," Fujita replied. Kanigiri only grunted in response. He was too humiliated to speak after being beat by a couple of middle school girls.

"We still need one more," said Teru. "Who wants to play?" She looked at the Takatoobara mahjong club members but they all politely shook their heads.

"To be honest, I've had enough mahjong this week," replied Maho.

"Ran out of taco power," said a bored and un-energetic Yuuki.

"Okayyy…." Fujita ignored Yuuki's comment. "I have a friend over there who might want to play. Do you mind?"

Teru shook her head.

"Good. Kokaji-san! Come here. We want you to play a game with us."

"H-huh?" Kokaji turned around, startled. "Uh y-yes! Coming!" Kokaji, who had blue hair that did little to cover her huge forehead, scurried over to the table and sat in the empty chair. "L-let's have a good game."

Teru smirked. "Yes. Good luck." _Especially to the guy. He's going to need it._

* * *

**Outside**

Puddles splashed as Saki ran through them. The rain pounded heavily against her body, drenching it in an instant. But she didn't care.

"Haramura-san! Wait! Please." Saki huffed. All this running was making it hard to breathe. The pinkette was so far ahead that her silhouette started to fade in the distance. Just when she thought the Haramura would disappear from her sight, the pinkettte suddenly stopped, causing Saki to crash into there back.

"Oof! Oh! Sorry!" Saki bowed in apology.

Nodoka turned around and glared at Saki.

_Eek. Scary. Note to self. Never make Haramura-san mad. Ever. _

They stood there, eye to eye, in utter silence. Only the sound of pouring rain could be heard. Brown clashed with pink, red clashed with blue.

_"_Miyanaga-san," Nodoka began in her small delicate voice. She spoke barely above a whisper, making Saki strain her ears in order to hear.

"Miyanaga-san….Do you like mahjong?"

Saki was caught off guard. Her head recoiled a bit in shock. She grabbed a fistful of her skirt and shuffled her feet.

"No…no I didn't."

Nodoka's face became indignant. She turned around, ready to leave, but Saki hurriedly continued, causing Nodoka to stop in her tracks.

"For the longest time, I hated mahjong. It was..it was the reason my family fell apart…why my father died." Saki took a deep breath, preparing herself to relive the pain of the past.

"Five years ago, I competed in the elementary national mahjong championships." Nodoka's eyes widened slightly but stayed silent. _Miyanaga-san…I remember now…those red eyes..._

"I got up to the 2nd round. But I didn't show up for my game. It was raining that day, just like today." Saki looked up and let the rain crash against her cheeks.

"On the way there...there was a car accident. It was my fault. I was late for the game. I pushed my drive faster but…" Saki choked back a sob.

"The road, it was wet. Too slippery. There was an incoming car. We couldn't turn fast enough." Words just kept rolling out of Saki's mouth. "There was a bright light, a loud honk, a horrible crashing sound, the crunching of metal. There was blood. So much blood. Everything was red, even the rain. There was a scream. So blood-curling. It was painful." Saki clutched her ears as she remembered how her father had screamed out. Tears streamed down Saki's face, mixing with the rain. Trembling, she continued.

"My dad….he didn't make it…" Saki hugged herself, trying to stop the trembling.

"Miyanaga-san…" Nodoka didn't know what came over her all of a sudden, but she lunged towards Saki and pulled her into a tight hug. "Miyanaga-san…"

"After that, I stopped playing mahjong. Today…today was the first time in 5 years. Funnily enough, today is the anniversary of my father's death… He was the one who gave me strength to play again…to move on from the accident from 5 years ago." Saki wiped away the tears. "And you…Haramura-san. You were the one who showed me how fun mahjong was again." Saki smiled. "Mahjong is fun. I want to keep playing with you Haramura-san. Really"

Saki hugged Haramura back. "Thank you, Haramura-san. Thank you." Saki smiled. "Thank you."

"Miyanaga-san." Nodoka smiled. "You've thanked me enough. I didn't even do anything."

Saki shook her head. "No. You did a lot. I want to play you in mahjong again."

"Miyanaga-san…We've played together before…5 years ago at that nationals…"

"We did?"

"Yeah…I just remembered. I thought you were familiar since that day in the park but I didn't think anything of it. But I finally remembered. I remember you winning with a lot of rinshan kaihous. You beat me quite easily the first day but you never showed up on the second day."

"Aha..sorry. I don't remember much from that year's nationals besides the accident…" Saki scratched her head. "But, I definitely would love to play you again Haramura-san."

"I do too Miyanaga-san. We'll play each other again at nationals."

"Nationals?"

"Yeah. That's where we first played each other. And that's where we'll play each other again."

"Hm. Nationals. Next year right? We can both go to nationals!"

"Promise?"

"Eh?"

"Promise that we'll both go to nationals?"Nodoka held out her pinky. Saki smiled and brought her pinky up, intertwining it with Nodoka's.

"Hm. It's a promise." They smiled at each other.

Suddenly, Saki looked up.

"What's wrong Miyanaga-san?"

Saki didn't answer right away. "The rain…Haramura-san. The rain! It's gone!" Saki smiled widely, until her cheeks hurt. "The rain stopped! It's gone! Look Haramura-san! The sun is shining! Haha!" Saki couldn't help herself. She spun around a couple times, laughing, and admiring the blue skies.

Nodoka let out a small smile. _Miyanaga-san. I want you to smile like that forever._

"GAHHHH! I HATE MAHJONG!" Kanigiri came running out of the cafe clutching his head, eyes wide.

Nodoka and Saki glanced at the man before looking at each other. Something must have happened. They quickly ran back inside the cafe, still dripping wet.

"What happened?" they asked at the same time. Saki's eyes widened. A dark atmosphere surrounded the mahjong table, increasing the pressure to an almost tangible degree. Three monsters sat there, each giving off its own unique aura. They turned to look Saki and Saki felt herself fight back a shiver. They seem to look through her soul with one eye each. Fire burned blazingly in each of the three eyes.

"Miyanaga-san...are you okay?"

Saki snapped out of it. She shook her head. "I'm okay. But..." Her eyes drifted towards her sister. Teru was currently chowing down on the sweets taco that she ordered so long ago. Although her face had the usual, emotionless facade, Saki, having known her sister for years, could tell Teru was enjoying the melted chocolate that covered the taco from the way Teru's eyes were shining. _Haha. Teru will always be Teru._

Fujita's heart was pounding. Her eyes were wide and she was sweating. She looked at the player sitting to her right. _That girl...is not human. In only one turn, she went on dealer streak and dropped all three of us below zero._ She glanced across the table at Kokaji pro. The normally sickly, timid mahjong pro was shaking. She looked traumatized._ It may not have been an official match, nor the most serious but, neither Kokaji nor I has ever been beaten like this since becoming a pro. Kokaji herself is known as the grandmaster, having won several titles undefeated yet...this girl..._

* * *

**Flashback Fujita's POV**

_Fujita was unhappy. Right when the game started, she felt an eerie chill go down her spine, as if she was being watched from behind. Something had looked, not at her, but through her. She felt bare. And while she was trying to shake off the weird feeling, she let Kokaji take the first win. _

_"Ron. 3,900." Fujita raised an eyebrow. It wasn't Kokaji this time. It was Ms. Plus Minus Zero's sister. It was a cheap, quick win. Was she aiming for the dealer repeat? _

_"Tsumo. 1,700 all." Another cheap win._

_"Ron. 6,400." Again? She won three times consecutively... against pros._

_"Tsumo 2,600 all." So fast!_

_"Ron. 8,900." Tsk. How did I play into her hand? Wait a minute..._

_"Tsumo 3,400 all." Her hand..._

_"Tsumo. 3,800 all."...is getting higher! It's increasing in value with each hand! And that's not all!_

_ So far the wins have been 2 han 40 fu, 2 han 50 fu, 2 han 60 fu, 2 han 70 fu, 2 han 80 fu, 2 han 90 fu, and 2 han 100 fu. The han value has stayed the same while the fu value was going up by 10's! What's next? A mangan?_

_"Tsumo. 4,000 all." It was a mangan! Someone needs to stop her! It's going to be her 9th win! Fujita looked over to Kokaji and Kanigiri. Kanigiri was shaking while Kokaji was sweating. Kokaji's having trouble too, eh? I have to stop her!_

_"Pon!" Fujita called. She's sitting to my left so I just needed to keep calling and skipping her turn._

_"Pon!" I skipped her turn again. If only someone would play into someone else's hand._

_"Tsumo." Shit. I was too late._

_"16,900 all." A dealer yakuman… Game over._

**_Flashback over_**

* * *

Fujita was surprised. She knew that among high schoolers there are what are called "national class monsters." However, they are often very _rare._ Yet, today, she seemed to have stumble upon one, if not two national class monsters. _Very interesting. I hope they show up next year. _

"What is your name?" Fujita asked Teru.

Teru glanced at Fujita. She swallowed the gummy bears in her mouth that came from the taco. "Miyanaga Teru." Fujita nodded. _Miyanaga Teru..._

Teru looked up and saw Saki and Nodoka dripping wet from the rain. She glanced at the window out of the corner of her eye.

"Saki," Teru called.

"Hm?"

Fujita looked at the younger sister who answered. _...and Miyanaga Saki...Ms. Plus minus zero_

Teru shook her head. She smiled to herself. Saki_ looks different...She looks happy._ "Let's go?"

Saki nodded her head and ran to her sister's side. She clung on to Teru's arm and smiled up at her sister. "Let's go." Saki turned to Nodoka and smiled. "See you next summer."

Nodoka smiled, catching the hidden meaning behind Saki's words. Her eyes shone in determination. "See you next summer. At the nationals."

The two sisters walked out of the cafe with many eyes watching their departure. Teru looked up and smiled._ It finally stopped raining._

* * *

**Extra**

"Yah Kokaji-san. You okay?" Fujita asked. Kokaji seemed even sicklier after that game.

"Y-yes. That girl..." Kokaji trailed off.

Fujita nodded. "She's not normal." Kokaji shook her head in agreement. "Not even close."

"You know, I've never seen you have that much trouble during a match before, even during official ones, Kokaji-san."

"Ah well. I wasn't playing seriously. Not even close. And I could tell you weren't either, but still, I didn't expect her to dominate the entire game."

"Yeah…same…"

"YOOOOOO!"An overly excited woman with shoulder length brown hair screamed from behind, making Kokaji jump in surprise.

"Kouko-san!" Kokaji clutched her heart. "Don't do that! You gave me a heart attack! I almost died."

"Hm. That's not good. 40 year olds shouldn't get heart attacks so easily."

"I'M ONLY 30!" Kokaji immediately covered her mouth after shouting that. She looked around nervously hoping nobody heard.

"Eh? But you won the inter-high championships 20 years ago right? That makes you around 40."

"IT WAS 10 years ago!"

"Really?" Kouko tilted her head.

"YES!" Kokaji's face was all red with embarrassment.

"Now, now. Stop teasing Kokaji-san." Fujita stepped in to stop the argument.

"How old are you Fujita-san?" Kouko mused. Fujita glared at Kouko.

"...You're really annoying."

"Ehhh?! That's mean!"

"Whatever. Nevermind that. Hey Uta!" Fujita called. A short woman with medium brown hair and brown eyes came over. She was decked in a red, flowery kimono.

"Yes Fujita?"

"Did you feel anything weird just now?" Uta raised an eyebrow, understanding what Fujita was getting at.

"Ohohoho. I don't know~" Uta playfully replied, hiding her mouth behind her fan. Fujita's right eye twitched.

"What do you mean you don't know? Don't tell me you couldn't feel th-"

"Hehe. If you're talking about that girl with the purple hair that sticks out, I felt it too. Berry good." A woman with purple hair in a business suit walked up.

Fujita's eye twitched again. _Her english is so annoying. _"So you know what I mean Kainou pro?"

"Yes. She's strong. I felt her aura from all the way over there."

"I wonder if she will compete in nationals next year."

"You mean the inter-high?"

"Yes."

"Do you even know if she's allowed to compete?"

"Huh? What do you mean?"

"How old is she? Is she in high school?"

"….I don't know. But I think she is."

"No good. No good." Kainou spoke in her engrish accent as she shook her head.

"Well, we'll just have to wait and see then right?" sighed Fujita.

"Oh by the way, how was Haramura?"asked Kouko.

Fujita looked at Kouko. "Who?"

Kainou wanted to face palm, but Kouko playfully responded, "The chick with the pink hair and the big boobs."

"Ohhh. What about her?"

"How well does she play?"

"Why are you asking about her? She didn't seem that good of a player to be honest. But she all of a sudden changed in the second game."

Kainou just looked at Fujita, trying to decide whether she was joking or not. "Haramura-san was the national champion in the middle school division."

"Seriously?!" Fujita exclaimed.

"Yea. I commented her match in the semi-finals with Yuuko Satou-san. Kokaji and Kouko commented her finals match."

"Seriously?!" Fujita faced the two.

Kokaji nodded. "Yes."

"Oh."

"So?" Kouko asked.

"So?" Fujita asked back.

"How was the champion?" Kouko insisted.

"I told you I don't think she's that good. What about you Uta-san? Did you watch her finals match?"

"Yessss."

"What do you think?"

"I don't know~~~" Uta playfully twirled around Fujita.

_Sigh. I need to stop my right eye from twitching._

* * *

**~Author's Note~**

Update within 4 days! Wow. lol Am i spoiling you guys? Are ya bored of seeing me yet? Teehee

Well next update is going to take a while. Tests are coming up. Ugh wish me luck :P

p.s. sorry if the formatting is a little weird. sometimes, fan fiction changes the format after i save. idk y

**_Replies_**

**Gu2st: **Thank you so much for the advice! :D yeah saki is in furiten...my bad whoops. I may re-write it later but...for now I'm going to let it slide. Thanks for catching my mistakes though! Hehe maybe you can be my beta reader? :P

**Anonymous Cookie: **hehe thanks for reading! :D love your comments. they make me happy :D


	6. Shiraitodai

**Replies**

**Gu3st: **keke that would've been good, but it was only a east round game. Also, i didn't want Teru to appear so OP so early on even though she really is OP. :D

**Anonymous Cookie: **lol this chapter was more of a relaxing, humor chapter. The speed will pick up soon. :D The pros are so amusing are they not?

Anways, hope you guys enjoy this. I tried my best. :D

~~~Somehow Inserts a Line Break Here…Someone teach me please lol ~~~~~~

"Woahhhh. It's amazing Onee-chan!"

Teru giggled. "It's just a school Saki."

"But it's so big! My middle school was a lot smaller!"

"Well, this is a high school.""

"..."

"..."

The two sisters stared at the giant building in front of them.

"Onee-chan."

"Yeah?"

"I think...I think I'm going to get lost."

"...Probably."

"Onee-chan!"

"What?"

"That's mean!"

"But you said it yourself didn't you Saki?"

Saki pouted. "Aren't you going to show me around school?""

"Well I would but..." Teru scratched her head. "I don't really know the school that well myself."

Saki shook her head and laughed. "Ah. That's my Onee-chan alright." Teru chuckled and ruffled Saki's hair affectionately.

"Yes, yes and that's my cute little sister. Now let's go Saki. You don't want to be late for the first day of high school do you?"

Saki shook her head and smiled. She latched onto to Teru's right arm. "Let's go."

They walked into the building.

"Welcome to Shiraitodai. I'm the student council president, Sumire Hirose. Nice to meet you." A woman with long purple-blue hair and sharp indigo eyes greeted them. Her voice was deep and mature. She eyed the Miyanaga siblings. "Welcome freshman. If you need help finding your classrooms, you can ask the student council members. We'll be happy to help." She bowed.

Saki looked impressed. _Wah She's so cool._

Teru's eye twitched. "Freshman?..." She grumbled. "I'm a third year. Why this little..."

Sumire raised both eyebrows. "Oh really? Sorry, my bad. It's just, you looked a bit lost. Your friend did too. So I assumed both of you were freshman."

Teru gave Sumire a flat stare. Saki laughed nervously.

"Uh hehe um. Do you know where class 1-A is?"

"Yeah. Just go down this hallway and make a left. It should be the third classroom."

"Thank you." Saki bowed. She turned to her sister. "See you during lunch at the library Onee-chan!" Teru nodded. "Well then, bye Onee-chan! See you later!" She gave her sister a quick hug before turning towards Sumire and bowing again. "Thanks again, student council president." Sumire nodded and Saki ran off.

Sumire turned to look at Teru and raised an eyebrow. Teru just stared back.

"Um...are you going to go to class?"

Teru looked away and didn't say anything.

"Don't tell me...You don't know where your class is either…" _She's a third year? _ Sumire was amused. "Ah okay. I'll show you the way to your classroom. Come on. The third year classrooms are upstairs."

Teru followed Sumire up the stairs.

"Follow me closely now. Don't want you getting lost." Sumire teased with the smallest of smirks. Teru's eye twitched. _The nerve of this girl!_

**LUNCH**

Saki was seated at a table in the library, quietly reading a book while waiting patiently for her sister. _I'm so happy. I really hope Onee-chan keeps her promise. I want to go to the nationals and see Haramura-san again._

_/Flashback/_

_Saki and Teru had just arrived home from the mahjong cafe and were about to go in to their respective rooms to take a bath when Saki called called out to her sister. _

"_Onee-chan."_

"_What is it, Saki?" Teru turned around to face Saki._

_Saki fidgeted with her hands. "Um, well...I have a favor to ask." She looked down. _

"_What is it?" Teru waited for Saki to speak up._

"_Um well...today, we played mahjong for the first time in five years and…" Saki paused, not knowing how to continue. She can't just force her sister to help her get into nationals can she? That would be rude. She didn't want to be a burden to her Onee-chan._

_Teru smiled knowingly. She walked over to Saki and bent down to her height. Teru ruffled the girl's head softly._

"_I know. You had fun today right?"_

_Saki nodded. Teru smiled. _

"_Well... As your older sister, I promise I'll do everything I can to help you get to the nationals next year."_

_Saki burst out in a wide smile and jumped onto Teru, encircling her arms around the older girl's neck._

"_Onee-chan!"_

"_Your friend with the big boobs better be grateful."_

"_ONEE-CHAN!"_

_Show them just how beautifully you bloom Saki. _

_/Flashback Over/_

"Onee-chan!" Saki whispered harshly to her sister who just walked into the library.

"Oh Saki. Let's go then?"

"Yes."

They walked out of the library, side by side.

"So how was your first day Saki?"

"Um it was okay. The teachers were very nice. So were the students."

"Did you make any new friends?"

"...Uh...no."

Teru gently smiled. _Saki's still so shy. _Teru playfully patted Saki's head. "That's alright. Cause you will always have me." Saki smiled gratefully.

"How about you Onee-chan? How was your first day of school."

Teru's face turned sour. _Ugh don't remind me._

"Ummm What's wrong Onee-chan?"

"I was stuck in the same class as that stuck up student council president."

"Oh. Hirose-senpai?"

"Yeah. She kept teasing me about my direction sense. That girl really annoys the...Wait...SENPAI?!"

Saki slightly flinched. "Uh...yes?"

"Why do you call her senpai?!"

"Um...cause she's an upper classman?"

"What about me? You don't call me senpai!"

Saki looked at her sister weirdly. "That's cause you're my Onee-chan. My baka Onee-chan."

"Oh right. Hehe. My bad." Teru sheepishly scratched her head.

Saki shook her head. _She's older, she's older, she's older, she's older…._

They've been walking for a while now and Saki was wondering why they hadn't arrived at their destination already. In fact, she thinks she's been down this exact hallway...ten minutes ago!

"Um...Onee-chan."

"Yes?"

"Where are we?"

"...I don't know."

"Eh?! What do you mean you don't know? I thought we were looking for the mahjong club. You told me you knew where it was."

"No Saki, I told you I've been there before."

"Then shouldn't you know where it is Onee-chan?"

"Um...well, I somehow always find it when I get lost. Whenever I wander, my feet always led me there for the past two years. But I never once went in."

"...So you're just going where your feet are taking you and hoping it's the mahjong club?"

"Yeap."

"...That kind of makes sense…" _No it doesn't. We're lost._

"Ah! Here it is. See Saki, what did I tell you? Your Onee-chan has it under control."

Saki sighed. She should have known better than to trust her sister's navigation skills. Yet, somehow, miraculously, they found the place. An old, worn out sign hung above the door. There was writing on it but it was so faded that Saki had to squint to read the two words.

_'Mahjong Club'_

It really was the mahjong club.

Teru walked up to the door and suddenly pushed it open.

"Ehh?! Shouldn't you knock first Onee-chan?!" Saki exclaimed in her high pitched voice.

Teru looked blankly at Saki, then back into the room, then back at Saki.

"But there's no one here. I guess they only meet after school."

Saki looked inside. There truly was no one there. The room was relatively empty with only a single automatic mahjong table in the middle. It looked quite lonely to Saki.

"Still," Saki spoke in a quiet voice, her eyes transfixed on the mahjong table.. "It's good manners to knock before you enter."

"Yea..."

"Saki, should we come back after school?" Saki didn't answer. Instead she walked silently to the middle of the room with Teru following behind her. Their footsteps echoed slightly off the wooden floor.

Saki reached out and caressed the side of the table, rubbing it gently. She then picked up a random tile from the pile of face down tiles in the corner of the table. It was the 1 pin. Saki remembered long ago, when she first started playing mahjong with her family, the very first tile she ever held, was the 1 pin. Teru placed her hand gently on Saki's shoulder. Saki stared at the tile in her hand, determination shining in her eyes.

_And so it begins again._

**_Shiraitodai's Hallways_**

A boy with short green hair was running in the halls of Shiraitodai. Wait a minute. The boy was wearing a skirt. It's a girl?!

Sheiko rushed through the hallways. "Gah. I hope my phone's in the club room. I don't know where else it can be. I must've left it there and forgot about it after being depressed about losing to Takami's yakuman. Aish. Stupid."

She stopped at the club entrance and was about to enter when the sound of tiles hitting the table entered her ear. _Sumire senpai's in_ _a council meeting right now preparing for the activities fair this afternoon and Takami's downstairs at the school store buying tea. Who's in there!?_

Takami slowly pushed open the door without making any noise and peeked in. She saw two girls. They seemed to be sisters because they looked alike. Only the hair color was different. _And they're playing mahjong! _

Seiko panicked. _What do I do? What do I do? They could be prospective members of the mahjong club! Should I go get Sumire Senpai? But she's busy. Should I tell her later? But then they would be gone and I don't know if they will ever come back. I should just barge in there and ask them to join. Yeah! Okay! Ready? Set! G-. _

_"_Saki, lunch is almost over. We should clean up soon and head to the club activities fair."

"Okay."

Seiko panicked even more. She started sweating. _Gah! They're leaving! What should I do? _Seiko looked around frantically..

The footsteps in the room got closer.

_Screw it! Run for it! _Seiko sprinted down the hallway faster than she ever sprinted before. She quickly ducked into a classroom.

"Let's go Saki."

"Did you hear something just now Onee-chan?"

"Hm? No."

"Oh okay. I thought i heard something outside. Anyways, Do you know how to get outside for the club fair?"

"Nope."

"Sigh. Alright. Let's go."

Seiko let out a relieved sigh. _So they are sisters. I have to tell prez right away. We can't let those two escape. If they join the club, we'll finally have 5 members! At least I know one of them is named Saki. I'll have to find them again at the club fair and ask them to join then. I won't let them escape, no matter what! President will be so proud of me!_

_"_Ahem."

Seiko turned around. A classroom full of 3rd years eating lunch were staring at her.

"Who is she?"

"What is an underclassmen doing here?"

"Why is he wearing a skirt?"

Seiko went red in the face. "Excuse me!" She bowed about three times before running out of the classroom towards the student council room. _Aghhh that was embarrassing_

_**Student Council Room**_

Sumire nodded. "Alright then. Meeting dismissed. Everyone head to the activities fai-" The door burst open, surprising everyone.

"Club president!" Seiko ran in, panting heavily. "Two. *gasp* mahjong *gasp* sisters *gasp* lunch *gasp* phone!" Seiko leaned against Sumire's desk for support.

Sumire raised an eyebrow. An awkward silence ensued. She cleared her throat. "Ahem. Dismissed." Everyone left leaving Sumire and Seiko. Sumire faced Seiko and crossed her arms.

"So, what is it you want to say? And speak clearly."

Seiko gasped "President! I just realized I left my phone in the club room."

Sumire raised an eyebrow. "Uh...so? Is that what you wanted to tell me? Honestly Seiko." Sumire shook her head as if disappointed in her underclassmen.

"No! No! What I meant to say is that I forgot my phone in the club room and so during lunch I went to find it but guess what?! "

"...what?"

"There were two girls playing mahjong there!" Sumire raised one eyebrow in doubt. No way was she that lucky.

"Really?"

_"_Yes!"

"Well who were they? Are they any good? Are yet going to join the club? Will we finally have a complete team?" Sumire urged, suddenly excited and slightly anxious by the prospective of new members. This could be her chance.

"Ummm... I don't know..."

Sumire wanted to throttle Seiko. "What do you mean you don't know!?"

Seiko shook her head. "I uh kinda spied on them and then ran here. Eh hehe." Seiko laughed nervously. The glint in Sumire's eyes had a murderous intent, making Seiko gulp in fear.

"You...let them go!?" Sumire growled.

Seiko cowered. "S-sorry. I didn't know what to do so I just ran here."

"Ahh well. What's done is done. So, what did they look like?"

"Um well, they were sisters. One had short purple hair and one had short brown hair. I think the younger one is called ...Saki? Also, I heard they were going to the activities fair. So hopefully, we would be able to find them there."

Sumire raised both eyebrows before cracking the smallest of smiles. _No way... Saki? Could it really be the lost pair of sisters I met this morning. The older sister...that would be Teru eh? Miyanaga Teru. _Seiko was scared. Sumire looked deep in thought and was even smiling! Sumire rarely smiles. She always had on a stoic expression.

"Uh president? Are you okay?"

"Oh I'm perfectly fine Seiko. Leave it to the student council president, I will find them. Kekeke."

_The president has gone crazy._

"Seiko!"

"Y-yes?"

"Tell Takami to hurry to the club fair. The mahjong club has some recruiting to do."

"Yes!" Seiko bowed and ran to find Takami. _I hope we find them. We will finally have 5 members.!...Wait, I feel like I'm forgetting something...my phone!_

_**Outside the School**_

Takami was trying her best to weave through the crowd without spilling a drop of her precious tea. Seiko had called her earlier and said something about sisters, and new recruits. Apparently, Seiko had found two new prospective members for the mahjong club. This was definitely interesting, so Takami was rushing to the mahjong club booth.

She was walking through the club fair that happens every year on the first day of school. The volleyball club and it's fifty plus members were all out and bustling and shoving fliers in the freshmen's faces; so were the drama club and the Go club. They were the three biggest clubs at Shiraitodai. Takami sighed. _It must be nice to have a lot of members. _Shiraitodai was a huge school, so it surprised Takami to a great extent that there was a serious lack in mahjong players.

Suddenly someone bumped into Takami, sending her down towards the ground and spilling her tea. Takami groaned when she hit the hard unforgiving floor.

"My glasses..." She spoke in a quiet voice while probing the ground with her hands trying to find her glasses which got knocked off when she fell.

"Oh! Sorry sorry! Are you okay?"

Takami looked up at the high, cheerful voice. The face was completely blurred and the only thing Takami could make out was the girl's long blonde hair.

"I'm okay," Takami replied in her soft voice. "But I can't find my glasses."

"Oh hehe. They're right here. Here you go!"

Takami put on her glasses and her world instantly became clearer. She stood up and faced the person who ran into her. She was a short girl, with a cute innocent face. However the clear blue eyes and subtle devilish smirk told Takami that the girl in front of her was not to be messed with.

"Well, I'll be going now." The girl tilted her head and smiled widely at Takami.

"W-wait." Takami didn't know what came over her all of a sudden but she grabbed the girl by her wrist. "Please check out the mahjong club. We're in room 9-A after school." _What am I doing? I don't even know if she plays mahjong! _

The blonde turned around with an amused smile. "Mahjong eh? Mahjong sounds like fun."

Takami stayed quiet, eyeing the girl. The blonde hair was somehow floating around the stranger as if not bound by gravity.

"See you after school then...Senpai." And with that the blonde turned around and walked away.

Takami didn't even know she was holding her breath and breathed out in relief when the blonde walked out of her sight. _What just happened? Who was that girl? My tea… _Takami picked up her tea cup, which was thankfully not cracked and stared at its emptiness sadly.

"Takami!"

Takami turned around. "Seiko?"

Seiko ran in front of Takami. "There you are. Are you okay? You look pale."

Takami just shook her head. "I'm okay."

Seiko just shrugged it off. "Well, let's go. The President is waiting for us." Takami just nodded and followed Seiko. She glanced back to where the girl disappeared off to. _I have a feeling I'll see her again...soon._

_**Mahjong Club Booth**_

Sumire waited angrily by herself. Seiko and Takami were both late. Sumire was going to give them both a piece of her mind later. Finally, Seiko appeared amidst the crowd with Takami following close behind.

"Finally," Sumire growled.

"Sorry. I ran into a girl earlier on and she made me spill my tea."

Sumire twitched. "I should've known you would be late because of spilt tea."

"Well I manage to get the girl interested in the mahjong club."

Sumire's ears perked up. "Really?"

"Uh yeah. She seemed to be a freshman, though I can't be sure."

Sumire eyed Takami thoughtfully. "Hmm...did she have short brown hair?"

Takami shook her head. "She had long blonde hair that kind of stands up."

"Bad hair day?" muttered Seiko, who was ignored.

Sumire looked deep in thought with her hand on her chin. She looked up at Seiko and Takami with intense fire. "That means... We have three prospective new members."

Seiko and Takami looked back at Sumire with equal determination. _This is our chance. _

"First, we must find the Miyanaga sisters," Sumire said.

"Miyanaga? You figured out their names?" asked Seiko.

"I met them this morning and showed them to their classes. The older one, Teru, is in my class."

"Ohh...that's perfect!"

"I know. But come on guys, we need to find them!"

"Okay!"

The three split up began their searching among the crowds. Seiko was constantly grabbing people with short hair only to apologize when they turned out not to be the Miyanagas. Takami walked slowly through the crowd while sipping a new cup of tea. She was not going to spill tea again. Sumire, on the other hand, stood unmoving in the middle of the crowd with her hands crossed over her chest. She opted to using her sharp eyes to spot the sisters. Unfortunately, none of them were having good luck. There were only thirty minutes left until school ended and not a single sight of the sisters.

_**Miyanaga Sisters**_

"Onee-chan..."

"Yes?"

"...there's no on here."

"No, there isn't."

The Miyanaga sisters were standing in front of the empty mahjong club booth. There was no one close by.

"I thought you said Shiraitodai had a mahjong club?"

"They did! The booth is here isn't it? They must've left."

"What should we do? Should we just go by after school like we planned?"

"..."

"Onee-chan?" She looked to where Teru was looking. _Oh no. _

"Sweets! They're selling sweets! Let's go Saki!" Saki could only face palm as she was dragged off by her sister.

_**After School, Mahjong Club**_

Sumire, Seiko, and Takami were all dead tired, and disappointed. They had searched all over for the sisters, but found nothing. Worst comes to worst, Sumire will have to corner Teru all by herself tomorrow in class.

"Well, let's just start a three-player mahjong game like usual. There's no point in crying about it," Sumire spoke as she tried to force the negative feelings away.

Suddenly the door opened. Sumire turned around and almost wanted to cry.

"Um..my name is Miyanaga Saki. I'm a first year. This is my Onee-chan, a third year, Miyanaga Teru. We would like to join the mahjong club please." Saki bowed deeply while Teru only bowed slightly, too busy sucking on a lollipop.

"Of course! Welcome! Welcome!" Sumire pulled both sisters into a tight hug, before looking at Teru. "I'm so glad that you joined Ruru-chan." The club members all stared at Sumire weirdly. They have never seen their president so...lively.

Teru twitched. "Never. Call. Me. That. Again." She pushed Sumire off of her and her sister. "And hands off my sister."

Sumire just chuckled lightly in response and ruffled Teru's hair. "Sorry, but you don't scare me." Sumire faced all her members. "Now that we finally have enough members, let's get starte-"

"Aren't you forgetting someone?" A light and cheerful voice interrupted Sumire. Everyone turned around. Takami, Saki, and Teru gasped.

"Why hello. My name is Oohoshi Awai, a first year. I would like to join your club as well." Awai let out her characteristic smile and bowed slightly.

"You actually came," Takami mumbled under her breath. Maybe she could forgive the girl for spilling her tea.

"Alright! Let's get a game going!" Seiko pumped her fist into the air, feeling excited about getting three new members in one day.

"Awai…" a quiet voice interrupted Seiko's hyperness. The blonde turned to the brown haired girl who had spoken. She let out a wide grin upon recognizing her old childhood friend.

"Saki-chan!" She bounced over and tackled the girl in a hug. She then turned around and pounced on the older Miyanaga. "And Teruu~~~ Keke. Long time no see." She rubbed her face in Teru's neck.

"Awai, get off. You're still as heavy as ever huh?" Teru gently pushed Awai off of her. Awai only stuck her tongue out.

"Awai-chan… I thought…" Saki looked lost, and overwhelmed. Awai turned to face Saki once again and let out a smaller, more genuine smiles. It was a smile of the past.

"I'm back, Saki." Saki nodded with tears in her eyes as she hugged her childhood friend.

_/Flashback/_

_Saki and Awai were at the edge of a pier, staring at the fishes in the water below. Awai was lying on her stomach, giggling as she watched the fish swim by freely. Saki only sat by her friend with a worried frown. Not too far from them was a wheelchair._

"_Look at these fishies go, Saki-chan!"_

"_Awai…"_

"_I love fish. They're really fun to watch...and eat!"_

"_Eh!? You enjoy both equally?" Awai only giggled at Saki's flabbergasted expression, before letting a forlorn expression show on her own face._

"_I loved to swim. Swimming was my life. I felt like a fish whenever I swam and every time I glided through the waters, I never wanted to come back to land. But because of the accident, I can't. Now, the fishes do all the swimming for me. I can only watch." Saki didn't say anything. The accident had been her fault. It was all her fault that Awai was hurt and couldn't pursue her dream._

"_Saki," Awai turned to look at her best friend. "I'm going to America. I'm going to take the surgery." Saki tackled Awai into a hug and let her tears flow out. "Saki, stay strong okay? I'll be back before you know it!" Saki could only nod, her face still buried in Awai's shoulder. "Saki, no matter what, keep blooming and keep doing what you love to do."_

"_...I'm so sorry, Awai-chan." Saki tightened her hug. Awai only shook her head._

"_It's not your fault. Nor Teru's. It was those bad people."_

_Saki sobbed. "But, if Teru and I hadn't beat them in mahjong so badly and provoked them, they wouldn't have tried to pull such a dangerous prank. You tried to save us...but you got hurt in the process. I'm so sorry Awai-chan. Now, you can't swim or walk."_

_Awai punched Saki lightly. "Stupid. Didn't I tell you I'll be fine. Do you not believe in me?"_

_Saki sniffed and looked into Awai's blue eyes. "I do. I do believe you."_

"_Good. Now come Saki, let us continue watching the fish swim."_

_Saki complied but glanced at her friend from the corners of her eyes. Awai had always been such a childish and immature kid, but even she had her mature moments. Awai was strong. And although Saki admired the wise side of her friend, she missed the cheery, and slightly stupid side of her._

_Because of the incident with Awai, Saki had developed her +/- zero playing style while Teru stopped playing mahjong completely._ I_t's for the better...so we don't hurt the people that we love. Unknown to Saki however, Saki would break her +/- 0 playing style in the future, resulting in the tragedy of her father's death. Since then, both Saki and Teru had stopped playing mahjong._

_/Flashback Over/_

"Keke. I told you I'll be back didn't I Saki-chan? You can't get rid of me that easily." She lightly punched Saki in the arm and even jumped up and down to prove that her legs were fine. "And guess what? I even picked up some mahjong tricks along the way. I bet even you and Teru can't beat me now!" Saki just laughed at the challenge. It was good to have her friend back.

Teru smiled slightly at the two freshmen in front of her. A burden had been lifted off of her and Saki. _This time, it was mahjong that brought us all together. _

Seiko, Sumire, and Takami were all confused at the tense and serious atmosphere that had just transpired but were all relieved when it was resolved. Sumire cleared her throat.

"So now that the introductions are done...let's begin playing." Everyone cheered in response. "Our goal..." the cheering stopped as Sumire continued talking. "…is to go to the nationals!" _This is it, our journey to the nationals!_

Little did Sumire know that merely going to the nationals was not going to be enough.

**Extras: Saki Cast and Pick Up Lines**

**Pick Up Line 1**

"Haramura-san, do you have a map? Cause I got lost in your eyes."

"...that's not saying much Miyanaga-san. I bet you'll get lost in anyone's eyes."

**Pick Up Line 2**

"Teru, do you think I have bad aim?

"No, in fact, you're Shiraitodai's sharpshooter Sumire. You have the best aim out of all of us."

"Then why am I constantly missing you?"

"...cause I'm a better player?"

**Pick Up Line 3**

"Miyanaga-san, why are you following me."

"Well, Oneechan said to follow my dreams."

"...you're lost aren't you?"

"...yes..."

**~Author's Note~**

Can someone please teach me how to put in line breaks? Please? *puppy eyes*

Hopefully, this chapter met your expectations. I didn't know what to do about their first meeting, so I hope this sufficed. More about the shiraitodai team will be revealed as they get used to each other's playing styles during a training camp. But up next is…Kiyosumi! :D yay! Can you guys guess who'll be the captain of the Kiyosumi team? keke

btw, i have a question. Can a school change their line up after prefectures, going into nationals?

Anyways, comments, questions, and suggestions are ALWAYS welcome! :D

Till Next Time,

~Sosh

ps. lol at dense Teru and poor Sumire. Sumire's pick up lines failed so badly.


	7. Kiyosumi

**It's been exactly a week! **

**I want to thank Theralion for being my beta-reader. You rock! (btw Thera was able to guess who kiyosumi's captain is. :DDD) Can you?**

**Anyways, please read and review! :D**

* * *

Nodoka stared up at the seemingly abandoned building and then looked down at the 'No Entry' sign at the bottom of the hill. Something...did not seem right. Why was it located here? Had the teacher been wrong about the location? Did she make a wrong turn? Regardless, Nodoka shook off any weird feelings and stepped over the 'No Entry' sign. She walked up the hill and hesitantly entered the old building only to find more stairs to climb up. Cursing herself for not running and exercising more, Nodoka started up the long creaky set of stairs. It was dark and the air was slightly damp. Finally, she reached the top of the stairs and sure enough, a white plaque way newer than the rest of the building indicated that she was indeed in the right spot.

'Mahjong Club'

Nodoka read the sign twice in order to convince herself that this run down building was indeed the hideout of Kiyosumi's prestigious mahjong club. One would think that seeing how it is so prestigious and all, the club would have a better club room. Nodoka reached her hand out towards the brass handles on the wooden doors in front of her. There was a rather queasy feeling in her stomach, meaning she was either nervous or ate something bad for lunch. She was going to go with the former. As she turned the handle, something small and hard ran into her right side, causing her to stumble to the wall.

"Wah! Nodo-chan! It's you! I haven't seen you all day!"

"Yuuki!" Nodoka's was pleasantly surprised to see her middle school friend here, before remembering how Yuuki had ran into her earlier. "You need to watch where you're going, Yuuki. You are constantly running into people. Remember how we met? You ran straight into me," Nodoka chastised the smaller girl.

"That was because Nodoka's boobs were so big, djey. I couldn't dodge them in time. Are you here to join the mahjong club Nodo-chan?"

Nodoka nodded. "Of course. And I'm guessing you are too?"

"Yep!" Yuuki grinned and proudly hit her chest with her fist. "We're going to go back to nationals and this time, we're going to get farther than we did last time as a team."

"Well of course. Kiyosumi's team is very strong. They won the championships last year. If we want to compete in the nationals, we have to get in the team first. Only the top five players get to compete."

"Well, looks like I'm going to have to kick up the taco power this year djey? I can't wait to show everyone who's boss! Now let's go, Nodo-chan!"

So together, they pushed open the door to Kiyosumi's mahjong club.

* * *

Now, considering how prestigious the mahjong club is and how they won nationals last year, Nodoka expected to see everyone being diligent and concentrating on their games. Instead, what Nodoka got were people running around, chatting, eating, flirting(?) , drinking tea, drawing on the whiteboard, surfing the web, and sun tanning out on the roof. Some kid was even sleeping on a bed in the back. Very few were actually playing mahjong. Needless to say, Nodoka was very surprised at how laid back the club was.

"Yo! Are you guys here to join us?" A girl with short black hair and two clips on the right bang asked us. She had blue eyes and was wearing the Kiyosumi uniform.

"Yah Nodo-chan," Yuuki whispered into Nodoka's ears. "Doesn't she remind you of a cat?" Nodoka ignored Yuuki, but couldn't deny the fact that she was curious as to whether those cat ears on the girl's head were real or not.

"Who are you?" Yuuki asked in a seemingly rude but very much Yuuki style.

"Hmph. You should be more respectful to your senpai. The name's Ikeda Kana." Kana pointed to herself with her thumb. "Hehe. And you are?"

Nodoka decided to speak up before Yuuki could say something rude again. "Hello, my name is Haramura Nodoka. This is my friend Kataoka Yuuki. We are both first years and would like to join the mahjong club."

"Haramura Nodoka...Haramura Nodoka...Hm That name sounds so familiar...Haramura...Haramura...Ha- Oh! Haramura Nodoka! You're Haramura Nodoka! Why didn't you say so earlier?" Nodoka just raised an eyebrow, speechless.

"Uh…"

"Come in! Let me introduce you." Kana turned around. "Kyaptain! The middle school national champion is here!"

A girl with shoulder length blonde hair turned around. She had her right eye closed. The eye that was open was a very pretty ruby red. She tilted her head slightly and smiled at Nodoka and Yuuki. Nodoka recognized the girl. She was vanguard of Kiyosumi's winning team.

"Oh! Welcome. My name is Fukuji Mihoko. I am the vice-president of the mahjong club but everyone just calls me Captain." Nodoka and Yuuki bowed and greeted Mihoko. "If you need any help, you can ask me or her." Mihoko gestured to the girl on her right who had one hand resting on her hip. "We'd be willing to help you with anything."

Nodoka's eyes gazed over to the person on Mihoko's right who seemed to be studying Nodoka very carefully. Nodoka's eyes widened, recognizing the red head. She was the girl who gave the welcoming speech in the morning's opening ceremony. The red head had found Nodoka after the ceremony in the hallways and winked at her, to which Nodoka had no idea how to react and just walked away unfazed. Nodoka had thought the red head had looked familiar but just brushed it off. Only now did she realize who the red head was. She changed her hairstyle. They used to be in pigtails, and longer. _I can't believe I didn't recognize her. It's really her, the president and lieutenant of Kiyosumi's top team. Then, Nodoka glared at the red head. I don't really like how she plays though. She's the one that uses all those bad waits._

"Student Council President!" Yuuki exclaimed. Hisa just smiled.

"Just call me buchou. Hello Kataoka-san, Haramura-san. Glad to see you finally came." Hisa waved lazily at Nodoka. Nodoka was surprised.

"You were expecting me, buchou?"

"Of course! All of us here know who you are, Ms. National Middle School Mahjong Champion. We've been expecting you to come since you said so in the interviews this summer. Or had you forgotten?"

Nodoka's face blushed a shade of baby pink. She had indeed forgotten how she boldly claimed that she was going to Kiyosumi and how she was going to compete in the interhigh team nationals._ That's so embarrassing._

"What about me?!" Yuuki shouted indignantly.

Hisa just laughed. "Of course, we were expecting you too Kataoka Yuuki. You were wonderful in the team tournament despite the ending results."

"Hmph. That's the power of the taco!" Yuuki crossed her arms, satisfied. Hisa just watched with an amused smile.

"Come on! Let me show you around." Hisa walked towards Nodoka and Yuuki.

"Oh! I'll help you too, Ueno-san." Mihoko walked up beside Hisa.

"Thank you, Fukuji-san. So let's see...I'm assuming you guys want to compete in the team tournament am I right?" Yuuki and Nodoka just nodded.

"Well, we can only send 5 members and a replacement. So it's going to be tough to get in. Unfortunately, this year, there are only two remaining spots on the team since three of us were on the team last year. The other two graduated. We decide who gets to go through a 2 week mini-tournament, in which everyone except the three current team members have to participate in. The scores of each game are going to be recorded on this sheet here. The games will follow the standard inter-high rules. At the end of the two weeks, Fukuji-san and I are going to pick the top contenders. There will then be a training camp, in which the current team and the top contenders will do some more training before the final lineup is decided. Any questions?"

"So, in order to get into the team, Yuuki and I would have to end up on the very top?"

Hisa rubbed her chin. "Hmmm…basically, yes."

"Okay, I get it. That's makes sense." Nodoka nodded.

"Anymore questions?"

"Actually, I have one more question." Nodoka raised her hand slightly in the air.

"What is it?"

"Uhm…" Nodoka looked around the chaotic club. "Is it usually this active here? No one is actually playing mahjong…"

Hisa laughed. "Don't worry, we're not always rowdy, though I have to warn you, we are pretty energetic. Nah. They're just relaxing before tomorrow when the mini-tournament starts. Once it starts, everyone will be playing mahjong non-stop everyday for three hours for the next two weeks. It can be pretty stressful, so they're just relaxing now." Nodoka just nodded.

"Well, since it's your first day, mind playing a few games so we can see how good you really are?" Hisa asked.

"Of course! Time to show you my taco power djey?" Yuuki pumped her fist in the air, while Nodoka just bowed like the proper lady she was raised to be.

"I would love to play a game with you, Takei-san." Hisa shook her head.

"No, no. You're not going to be playing against me today, Haramura-san. We'll save that game for later. For now, we'll have you play against a couple of second years here. Mako! Kana! Would you guys do the honors of playing Nodoka and Yuuki here? It'll be just a quick east round game."

A girl with short, curly-ish green hair and glasses came over. She rolled up her sleeves. "Time for some fun, eh?" She pushed up her glasses. "Nice to meet you. My name is Someya Mako."

"And you've already met me." The cat girl who introduced herself as Kana smirked. "Well let's get started no?"

They sat down after picking seat order. Yuuki was first dealer.

"I'm not going to go easy on you, middle school champion. You're in high school, now. It's a whole 'nother league." Kana warned.

"I'm not going to let you win," was Nodoka's stoic answer.

"Alright, let's go!" Yuuki spun the dice.

**East Hand 1 Dealer Yuuki**

_Yuuki: 25, 000 (Dealer)_

_Mako: 25, 000_

_Nodoka: 25, 000_

_Kana: 25, 000_

Yuuki munched on her tacos, which she bought at the school cafeteria. _Hmm...it's only an east round game djey? This is to my advantage!_

"Riichi!" Yuuki slammed the 8 pin sideways on the table. "Come at me," she challenged.

Kana looked over to the orange haired girl, surprised at the speed. _This shrimp's got some speed eh? And she's dealer too. I'm faced with a dealer riichi in the 11th turn. _Kana smirked._ This speed may be impressive, but we're in high school now. I was ranked 6th last year, while Mako was ranked 7th. We'll show them just how strong Kiyosumi is!_

Yuuki sighed, obviously dejected. It's already been 5 turns since she declared riichi, yet her winning tile hasn't come out yet. For this to happen in the east round, while she was dealer was very disheartening.

"Riichi-dashi!" Another riichi stick was thrown onto the table. Yuuki looked up, surprised. _That cat girl! Are those cat ears?_

Mako slid her glasses up and smirked. Looks like Kana isn't going easy on these first years.

"Tsumo!" Riichi tanpin. 1300/3600."

Nodoka was surprised. She had not only bypassed Yuuki's dealer riichi, but was also able to catch up and win. She knew personally that Yuuki can sometimes be very hard, but not impossible to overcome in her dealer position in the east round. _I can't underestimate them._

**East Hand 2 Dealer Mako**

_Yuuki: 21,400_

_Mako: 23,700(Dealer)_

_Nodoka: 23,700_

_Kana: 29,900_

Kana smirked. _That was easy. Now it's Mako's turn to be dealership. I have to watch out for her. I can't lose to her._

Mako sighed, rolling her shoulders backwards. _Man, I'm getting old. _She took off her glasses and put the safely on the side of the table._ Hmm. I like the face of the table. Heheh_

Hisa, who was watching the match, smirked when she saw Mako remove her glasses. _Oh looks like Mako's finally getting serious eh?_

Mihoko was standing next to Hisa, quietly observing the game with one eye. _Kana…_

"Ron! 2000." Nodoka's eyes widened. She fell into a silent trap. She didn't have the smallest inkling that the girl to her right was already in tenpai.

Kana let out a small sigh of relief on the inside. _Man, Mako's silent attacks are seriously scary. I would've been caught in that, if not for Ms. Pinky here._

**East Hand 2 Bonus 1 Dealer Mako**

_Yuuki: 21,400_

_Mako: 25,700(Dealer)_

_Nodoka: 21,700_

_Kana: 29,900_

Nodoka concentrated on the tiles in her hand. She hesitated. Which tile would give me the most opportunities to get into tenpai?

Hisa raised an eyebrow. Why was Nodoka hesitating? And on the first move too? She noticed this during the recording of the nationals too. Nodoka would always hesitate a bit on the first move. However, she rarely hesitated afterwards. What does the hesitation mean?

Kana was slightly irked. _Man pinkie sure took her time. It's probably either a great hand or a horrible one._

Yuuki was frustrated. It's already the third hand yet she she hasn't won a single time. _Where's my east wind? I can't win if I stay concealed. I just can't seem to get into tenpai. Looks like I'll have to give up my riichis._

"Pon!" It was the 8 of pins.

"Chi!" Yuuki slid the 2,3, and 4 pin tiles against the table side. _Opening my hand like this makes it so easy to read, but I have no other choice. These upperclassmen aren't budging the slightest bit. I have to catch up to them._ Yuuki saw Nodoka put down a 5 pin. This will be the third call.

"Pon!"

"Ron." Mako smirked. "Sanshouku, dora 2. 12,300."

Yuuki felt her spirit leave her body. She felt battered and beaten. _A dealer's mangan?! __There goes my chance. She stole it from me._

Nodoka was equally surprised. _I discarded the 5 pin on purpose, knowing Yuuki would call but not win on it. I didn't expect Someya-Senpai to win on it. It was another silent trap. Why did she even wait on a pin tile if she knew Yuuki was collecting them? That restricts her hand. Unless she was counting Yuuki's sudden calling style and used it to her advantage. Yuuki's hand was open so it was easy to read. Did she know I would discard the 5 pin? That's...just a coincidence right? _

Hisa smiled understanding why Mako played the way she did and set up her hand to change her waits to pin tiles after Yuuki started calling and revealed her hand. Mako has thousands of "faces" memorized and can easily adapt to any situation. She is able to utilize the layout of the table to her advantage. Mako's flexibility in playing style and her deadly silent attacks are what make her a formidable player even at Kiyosumi. Looks like the champion is in a pinch.

**East Hand 2 Bonus 2 Dealer Mako**

_Yuuki: 21,400_

_Mako: 38,000(Dealer)_

_Nodoka: 9,400_

_Kana: 29,900_

Kana's ears perked up. _My, my. Looks like Mako's got quite the lucky streak here eh? Haramura looks like she's struggling. The shrimp isn't coping too well either. Maybe I should help end their miseries. Let's see, I'm two tiles away from tenpai. I need to be quicker._

"Pon!" One away from tenpai.

"Pon!" Kana smiled. _Tenpai. My trap is set. Now the predator will wait for its prey. Come!_

Mako glanced at the discards. That's two already calls now. Kana is probably in tenpai now. Her discards are mostly sou tiles with honors. In fact it's almost entirely all sou and honor tiles. The two calls she made just now were both pin tiles. Therefore, her hand should mostly be pin and wan tiles. However, Kana should have picked up by now that Haramura has a very logical playing style. If she wants to trap her opponents with an open hand, especially someone of Haramura's caliber, she is going to play in a style that defies logic. If she wants to catch Haramura or Yuuki, then her wait might be on a sou tile. _Therefore, by relying on suji, I should be able to pass._

Mako gingerly discarded the 3 wan in her hand.

"Ron. Tanyao toitoi." 8,300."

"What?" Mako let slip a dumbfounded expression before letting out a resigned smile. _Looks like her target wasn't Haramura nor Yuuki._

Nodoka furrowed her eyebrows. _What was that? Wasn't it obvious that Ikeda senpai was collecting pin and wan tiles? Why did Someya senpai discard such a dangerous tile?_

"Keke. I'm gunning for the top nyan." Kana quipped.

"Sorry, but I don't plan on losing to you anytime soon," Mako replied with a confident smirk.

**East 3 Dealer Haramura**

_Yuuki: 21,400_

_Mako: 29,700_

_Nodoka: 9,400 (Dealer)_

_Kana: 38,200_

Nodoka looked down at her shaking hands. She tried to clench the edges of her skirt, but they wouldn't stop trembling. For the first time in a long time, Nodoka was scared. She had thought it would've been easy. She had thought she was plenty good enough. She was wrong. She may be the national middle school champion, but against high schoolers, it didn't matter. It was a completely different level. Here she was, the Haramura Nodoka, hopeless and almost cowering in the presence of these two upperclassmen. It was almost pathetic.

"Tsumo. 1,500/3,000." Nodoka tightened her fist. She had lost again. The frustration just kept growing inside her stomach like a pot of boiling water about to overflow. She cannot lose like this. She was not going to lose like this. _I have to keep my cool. I have to fight!_

**East 4 Dealer Kana**

_Yuuki: 19,900_

_Mako: 35,700_

_Nodoka: 6,400 _

_Kana: 36,800 __(Dealer)_

The last hand. Hisa rubbed her chin. So far, only Mako and Kana had scored and Mako was in the lead. Truthfully, it was a bit of a letdown. Nodoka and Yuuki were unable to do anything. If it continues on, they may end up not winning a single hand. Even from the very beginning, it was a match between Kana and Mako. The two new recruits had not put up a decent fight. Haramura Nodoka just did not seem like she was all that. _But that's not true...is it?_

Mako glanced at Nodoka. _Whoopsies. And I was just trying to feel you out for a bit. Honestly, I was a bit worried that I would have more competition this year but it looks like it's just me and Kana that are in for the running for the spots on the team. Well, let's end this then._

Nodoka was at her wits end. She was holding on to a rope about to snap. This was her last chance.

"Pon!" Nodoka slid the three hatsus to her corner of the table. Two away from tenpai. I need either a 1 wan, 4 wan to complete a sequence or the third 3 wan for a triplet. Ah! There it is!

"Pon!" One away from tenpai. Nodoka discarded her 2 wan. I'm so close.

"Ron." Nodoka's whipped her head up. _No way….another silent tenpai._

"2000."

**End Scores:**

_Yuuki: 19,900_

_Mako: 32,800_

_Nodoka: 4,100 _

_Kana: 36,800_

Nodoka hung her head in defeat. In the end, it was not enough. They were too tough.

It was silent for a good minute. Everyone tried to find the right words to break through the tension, but no words ever got passed the tongues. They remained unspoken. Everyone stood still.

"Good game, Haramura-san, Kataoka-san." Mako finally spoke up, but Nodoka paid no heed. She stood up from her chair, head still bowed down and ran out of the door.

"Nodoka…" Yuuki murmured as she watched her friend run out the door.

"She'll be okay." Yuuki turned around to see it was the president who talked. Hisa walked over, hands crossed over her chest, and smiled at Yuuki. "She'll be back. I know it." Yuuki just looked at the ground, hoping to believe in the president.

* * *

The next day…

The doors to the clubroom banged open. A pinkette with big boobs walked in.

"Nodo-chan! You came!" Nodoka looked at Yuuki.

"Of course I came. Why would I not?" Yuuki just smiled sheepishly and scratched her head.

"Er...I don't know. It's just, yesterday, she suddenly rushed ou-"

"I am not that weak Yuuki. You know that. I will not let yesterday's match get to me."

Yuuki just smiled gladly. "Of course, Nodo-chan! Let's go kick their butts!"

"Attention please. May I have everyone's attention please." Everyone turned to face the club's president who stood confidently in front of the white board. "Starting from today, is the ranking tournament. Everyone will have two weeks to raise their rankings. At the end of the two weeks, the ranking will be used to choose the two new Kiyosumi Mahjong Club Team members and will be able to participate in this year's inter-high. For the first week, the games will only be one east round. For the second week, the games will be extended to a hanchan(east and south round). The rules are according to the standard tournament rules. This is the playing schedule for today." Hisa flipped the white board over, revealing the matches. "Please begin playing and good luck to everyone."

The players all settled down at the various mahjong tables. Yuuki glanced over to Nodoka who was sitting three tables away from her. _I hope Nodo-chan will be alright._

"Good luck on your game." A voice interuppted Yuuki's thoughts. Yuuki turned her focus back to the table and smiled. "Good luck to you as well." _Well, time to show them some taco power._

* * *

Yuuki happily walked over to the recording table. She hummed cheerfully while quickly recording the game.

"Oh, Yuuki. You're already done with your game?"

"Oh buchou! Yea, I'm already done. Compared to the senpai yesterday, these three were really easy!" Yuuki boasted. "I'm undefeatable in the east round!"

"Haha. Well, that's good. Keep up the good work then eh?"

"Of course!" Yuuki eyes glanced over to Haramura's table. They still weren't done yet. Hisa followed Yuuki's gaze and grinned. She patted Yuuki on her back.

"Looks like they'll be done soon. Don't worry eh? Go talk to her. Now, see ya later." Hisa walked off and started talking to Mihoko. Yuuki wasted no time in walking to Nodoka's table. True enough, the game had just finished.

"Nodo-chan! How was the game? You won right?"

"...Nodo-chan?"

Nodoka looked down, her bangs covering her eyes. She shook her head lifelessly. She had lost. Yuuki felt her previously excited state die down in an interest as worry filled her eyes.

"Nodo-chan…" Yuuki reached out to comfort Nodoka but Nodoka moved out of the way.

"I'm fine Yuuki. Don't worry about me."

"But Nodo-chan-"

"I said I'm fine!"

"But!"

"Attention please. It looks like all of you are done with your first games. Please proceed to the second matches."

"See you later Yuuki." Nodoka walked away without another word.

_Nodo-chan…_

* * *

Most of the members of the club had left, leaving only Hisa and Mihoko. Hisa was currently sitting in a chair, studying the records from today's games.

"See anything interesting, Ueno-san?" Mihoko asked as she placed the freshly brewed cup of tea on to the stand next to the couch.

"Hmmm…" Hisa took a sip of the tea. "Thank you, Mihoko. The tea is delicious as usual. Anyways, to answer your question...not really. Kana and Mako won most of their games today and are on top as expected. They both have improved a lot since last year."

"That's good. Kana trained very hard over the summer. I'm glad she's improved. What about that Haramura-san and her friend? Have they proven themselves to your expectations, Ueno-san? "

Hisa laughed. "What are you saying, Mihoko?"

Mihoko just smiled. "Well, you were all excited last summer when Haramura-san announced that she was coming to Kiyosumi. Knowing you, you probably have some pretty high expectations for this year's tournament, as well as Haramura-san. Am I wrong, Ueno-san?"

Hisa just shook her head. "My, my. You know me too well, Mihoko. Well, Yuuki has been playing exceptionally well, better than I would've predicted. She keeps winning big hands, especially in the beginning of the east round as dealer. It looks like she wasn't too affected by yesterday's defeat. That's a relief. She did seem to be quite the easy-going type."

"True, but I don't think it's fair to say she wasn't affected at all. Easy going or not, I can sense her fighting spirit has increased. She was definitely playing her best today."

"Agreed...but she still has a lot of room to improve. Her defenses could use some work. These discards are too obvious...Hmmm that's weird."

"What's wrong, Ueno-san?"

"In all five of the games today, Yuuki was first dealer in all of them."

"Eh? Really?" Mihoko leaned over Hisa's shoulder, trying to glance at the records.

"Yes."

"That's curious. Do you think it's a coincidence or something more?"

"I don't know. But I don't think it's a coincidence. That's quite a low possiblity."

"Maybe. So what about Haramura-san?" Hisa shook her head. "What's wrong?" Mihoko inquired.

Hisa sighed and shook her head. "Nothing." Hisa looked at Haramura's records for today's games.

_She's not doing so well. She's only won one of her games out of the five. She won't be able to make the team if she keeps going like this. I don't think she would even make top ten. But what can I do?_ Hisa put her finger to her head as she pondered over all the possibilities. Mihoko just watched Hisa with a worried look._ Nothing… For once, I'm not going to do anything. I can't do anything for her at this point. This is a battle she has to fight alone. She must overcome this hurdle by herself. _

"Ueno-san, is there something wrong?"

Hisa just looked at Mihoko and smiled. The glint in her eyes made Mihoko slightly nervous.

"Ueno-san…You're planning something aren't you? This...is another one of your bad waits, isn't it?" Hisa automatically grinned in reponse.

"Actually, for once, I don't think this one counts as a bad wait."

* * *

"Ron!"

Nodoka crushed Etopen in a death hug as she tried to bore a hole into her computer screen. It's already been a four days since she joined Kiyosumi's mahjong club, and ever since then, she has been in a slump. Actually, she felt as she has been in a slump for a while now. Ever since the inter-middle championships ended, Nodoka felt stuck. No matter how much she played, she didn't feel like she was going anywhere. Was this the curse of being in first? It was like she was stuck in a hole, a deep hole. And every time she tried to get herself out, she would only find she had only dug herself deeper.

Is there no use? She trained hard, everyday. Mahjong was something she liked. No, scratch that, it was something she loved. Nodoka could very confidently declare that mahjong was a huge part of her life, though her father wouldn't be too happy. Nodoka felt at ease when she sat her giant comfy chair and played online mahjong while clutching Etopen for hours and hours every night. She felt relaxed. It was a joyous pastime. However, lately, mahjong was anything but fun. It has been so stressful. Was she really just a sore loser?

Nodoka thought back to the first match she played in Kiyosumi. She had lost, badly. But was it really the stinging pain of defeat that was killing her or something else? It's not like she's never lost before. Heck, she's lost thousands of times. But that's never stopped her, until now. Why was she so afraid? Why was mahjong not fun?

No, she can't give up. She won't give up. Giving up just wasn't her style. Did she give up when her father refused to let her play? No. Did she give up when she played Kuro-san and Shizuno-san back when she lived in Nara? No. Did she give up last summer when her team was way behind in the tournament? No. Did she give up when she played in the nationals last summer started off badly? No. Did she give up when she played against that old man in the mahjong parlor with Miyanaga-san? No. So she was not going to give up now. Not without a fight.

Sighing, Nodoka decided to call it a night. She changed into her nightgown, grabbed Etopen and turned off the lights. She looked up at the ceiling as she lay in her bed. Something still didn't feel right though.

_What am I missing?_

* * *

_Six years ago…._

Nodoka opened her eyes. She was greeted with the sight of white ceilings, white walls, white floors, white bedsheets. Even her nightgown was white. The smell of anestheptics invaded her nose. Where was she? She tried to sit up but a her body suddenly went weak and she fell back down, sweating from the effort.

"Oh! You're awake! Are you feeling alright?" Nodoka looked up to see a nurse in her twenties, maybe early thirties. She had short brown hair and was very pretty. She had sparkling brown eyes, but the most appealing part about the woman would be her smile. It made Nodoka feel at ease, even in the strange situation.

"Uh, I'm okay, though I feel a bit dizzy. What happened to me?" Nodoka tried to sit up again. The nurse quickly rushed over and helped the pinkette sit up.

"Thank you," Nodoka spoke, slightly out of breath.

"It's all right. Well, Haramura-san, you just got a nasty cold. You know it's not safe to run in the rain right? Especially when it's thundering. You collapsed in the rain, and was brought here by father."

Nodoka's eyes widened. The memories suddenly started to flash into her mind.

~_Flashback~_

_It was dark and cold. The sky was pouring endlessly and occasionally flashed brightly as lightning danced through the air, accompanied by a symphony of ear-shattering explosions. _

_"Mom! Please! Don't go."_

_"Go back inside, dear. You'll get sick. You're father will get mad."_

_"No! Mother, please! Why are you leaving us? Why are you leaving me?"_

_"Let go, dear. I have to go now. Promise you'll be a good girl alright?"_

_"No! MOM!"_

_~End Flashback~_

"Haramura-san? Haramura-san? Are you okay? Haramura-san?" Nodoka snapped out of her flashback as the nurse gently shook her.

"U-u-uh. I'm okay," she stuttered, trying to hold back her tears. "Mother…" she whispered under her breath as she involuntarily clenched the white bed sheets. The nurse looked at the young, shaking girl sympathetically.

"You know," the nurse began to talk in a small voice. "I have a daughter around your age. She's actually a year older, in the fifth grade. She's been through a lot, but she's managed to get through all of her obstacles because of this." The nurse held up a mahjong tile. It was the 1-pin tile. "Let's get your mind off of other things for a while. You'll probably be staying here for a couple of days until your cold goes away. In the meantime, I'll teach how to play a game in order to keep your mind off of things huh? Sound nice?"

Nodoka sniffed and merely nodded, not knowing how else to respond.

"Well, here's how you play." The nurse brought over some tiles from a mahjong table in a waiting room inside the hospital. She started to explain each tile and the rules of the game. Occasionally, the nurse would mention her daughter and laugh at her daughter's silliness. At first, Nodoka just sat there in her bed, nodding quietly every time the nurse asked her if she understood. Eventually, she started to ask her own questions. The nurse would respond almost giddily and give her a shining smile. Nodoka felt herself smile as well. It was quite contagious.

"Nurse-san?"

"Yes?"

"What is your daughter's name?"

"Why?"

"I think…I think I would like to meet her and maybe play mahjong with her." The nurse smiled.

"I think she would love that."

"So, what is her name?"

"Hmmm…she has the same first name as your father."

* * *

_Present_

Nodoka yawned. She sat up in her bed and stretched her arms.

_That dream last night… It was from when I was in the fourth grade. It was when I first played mahjong. Back then, I had just lost my mother. The nurse…she taught me mahjong in order to keep from drowning in despair. All these years, I played mahjong because I love it…_Nodoka shook her head and looked down. A warm fuzzy feeling filled her entire being. She couldn't help but smile. _I can't believe I almost lost sight of that. _

Nodoka made a fist._ No more groaning in despair. I have to keep my eyes on what matters and fight until the nationals. Just you wait Miyanaga-san! No matter what comes at me, I will defeat it!_

* * *

"My, my. Looks like you're back in the groove, Nodoka." Mako smiled as she eyed the girl. The pinkette seemed to be a whole new person as of the beginning of this week. Something must have happened over the weekend. Nodoka walked and played with a lot more confidence.

"Naturally." Nodoka responded. For the first few days of the past week, she was able to slowly grow in confidence. With every match, her resolve hardened. Soon she was able to play in a fully relaxed state, one that seemed almost emotionless. And with her new self, she climbed over the mountain that once stood in front of her. She had climbed all the way to the top. Despite having a low win-loss ratio, she had the highest total points and was currently ranked 3rd, right behind Mako, and Kana.

"Well, looks like we get to play again don't we?" Kana smiled. "Don't think we're going to go easy on you guys."

"Of course not. However this time, I will be the winner."

Yuuki looked over at her friend. _So Nodo-chan is finally back! __Hehe. Time for a rematch! I'm in fourth right now, so I still have a chance! I must win! _"I'm not going to let any of you guys win. I'll show you, the power of tacos!"

* * *

Hisa and Mihoko both smiled as they saw the final rankings.

"This year's going to be really fun, Mihoko. I know it." Hisa smiled and put her arm around the blonde next to her.

Mihoko blushed. "I agree Ueno-san." They turned around.

"Alright! Now if I can have everyone's attention please. I'll announce the contenders for this year's team. We have four contenders who will be coming with the current team members to the training camp." All the chattering died down instantly. Hisa cleared her throat.

"The four contenders are…Haramura Nodoka, Ikeda Kana, Someya Mako, and Kataoka Yuuki! Congratulations!"

Yuuki tackled Nodoka in a tight hug. "We made it, Nodo-chan!" Nodoka just let out a shaky breath. The past two weeks had taken a toll on her, especially the first week. She was glad it was finally over. In the end, she was able to overcome it.

"Yah, don't look too relaxed now. The hard part starts here," Hisa reminded Nodoka. "But good job." She patted the pinkette on the back. Nodoka just smiled gratefully.

"Thank you, buchou."

Everyone clapped and cheered.

Suddenly, the club room doors slammed open. In walked a girl with short brown hair. She bowed and greeted with everyone with a cheerful smile.

"Hello, everyone! Long time no see!"

Hisa smirked while Nodoka gasped.

"1st years, I want you to meet, last year's Kiyosumi's team captain..._ _!"

* * *

**Extras: Saki cast and pick up lines pt2**

**Pick Up Line 1**

"Haramura-san, do you have a band-aid?"

"Eh? No. Why? Did you hurt yourself?"

"I'm fine. I just scraped my knee falling for you."

*blushes* "Hmph. And here I was actually worried. You're horrible, Miyanaga-san." *turns around*

"…no, seriously. I need a band-aid. I really did fall."

**Pick Up Line 1.5**

"Can you take me to the doctor, Haramura-san? Because I just broke my leg falling for you."

"Again, Miyanaga-san?!"

**Pick Up Line 2**

"Mihoko! Does your left eye hurt? Because you've been looking right all day."

"Ueno-san…*blushes* But I see out of my left eye, not my right."

"…oh right."

**Pick Up Line 3**

"Yah! Nodo-chan! Saki has been staring at your boobs for a while now! Keke. Is Saki enchanted by Nodoka's amazing tits?"

"No, no! I'm not staring at your boobs, Haramura-san. I'm staring at your heart."

"That's the same thing, Miyanaga-san."

**Pick Up Line 4**

"Are you lost Haramura-san? Because heaven is a long way from here."

"You're the one that's lost, Miyanaga-san."

**Pick Up Line 5**

"Teru, you are so beautiful, I would marry your sister just to be a part of your family."

"HANDS OFF MY SISTER, SUMIRE!"

**Pick Up Line 6**

"Yumi, can you drive?"

"No."

"Well you're driving me crazy."

"Kanbara, you're the one that drives crazy."

**Pick Up Line 7**

"If I were a cat I'd spend all 9 lives with you."

"Kana, you practically are a cat."

"Kyaptain!"

**Pick Up Line 8**

"Haramura-san."

"Yes? Miyanaga-san?"

"…"

"Miyanaga-san?"

"You're so beautiful that you made me forget my pickup line."

*blushes*

**Pick Up Line 9(not really a pick up line)**

"Ueno-san. I might be a little bit late to our date."

"That's okay, Mihoko."

"Are you sure? I don't want you to wait."

"Silly, Mihoko. Even if it's a bad wait, I'll wait for you."

* * *

**Author Notes:**

**GASP! WHO IS IT? WHO IS KIYOSUMI'S CAPTAIN? WHO?! **

**hopefully, this chapter gave enough hints.**

**And as a reference, h****ere were the final rankings. **

_Kiyosumi Final Rankings_

_1\. Haramura Nodoka_

_2\. Ikeda Kana_

_3\. Someya Mako_

_4\. Kataoka Yuuki_

**Replies**

**Guest: **lol glad you liked the pick up lines keke :D

**Gu3st: **Yeah, but Seiko will stop being the main comedic source as Shiraitodai is pretty funny as a whole. Seiko won't have to bear the burden alone now that Awai, Saki, and Teru joined.

**Wandering Fool: **Sumire will have to stand both sisters' horrible sense of direction, an immature child who is in the 100th grade, a quiet tea lover, and a boyish girl. Yeah, she has her hands full. Keke. I hope this chapter answered some of your questions.

**Btw, did you guys notice? I learned how to line break. Thank you to everyone who taught me how! *bows**

**The pick up lines are so random. Lol hope you guys like them. keke I don't know if you can tell, but I ship BuCap so hard. **

**Anyways, till next time!**

**Sosh**


	8. Kiyosumi's Training Camp

**Kiyosumi**

"Alright, I know we just got here but..."Hisa paused and the Kiyosumi mahjong club leaned forward in anticipation. "Let's head to the onsen!" She pumped her fist in the air. Mako face palmed, while the rest of the team cheered.

"Who are you trying to trick?" Mako asked Hisa flatly who gave a smile that seemed to say 'just go with it.'

"Let's go djey?" Yuuki immediately rushed out the room followed by the hyperactive Kana, both ecstatic at the thought of relaxing in a hot bath after the three hour long drive.

Nodoka lagged behind the rest of the team. She paused to glance over the mahjong table and caressed the tiles before finally heading toward the onsen. By the time Nodoka had walked into the changing rooms, Yuuki, Mako, and Kana were already inside the bath. Mihoko was just heading in.

"Um," Mihoko blushed. "I'll wait for you inside, Ueno-san."

Hisa smiled and waved her hand good naturedly. "Okay. I won't be long, Mihoko." With that, Mihoko stepped out of the changing rooms and entered the steamy warm onsen. This left three people still in the middle of changing.

"Haramura-san, no need to be shy. Hurry and get changed. Everyone else is already inside. The onsen here is heavenly," Hisa encouraged Nodoka with a smile, who was standing still at the entrance. Nodoka just merely nodded before slowly taking off her clothes and neatly folding them into the lockers. She checked for any creases and nodded slightly in approval after finding none.

"My, my. I see you're as proper and meticulous as ever, Nodoka."

Nodoka turned to the brunette that spoke to her. "I don't know what you mean, Kei." The said girl just shrugged and smiled mysteriously at Nodoka.

"You two seem close," Hisa noted the lack of honorifics between the two. "Have you guys met before?"

Nodoka nodded. "Yes. We met six years ago, when I was in the hospital. She taught me how to play mahjong to pass time."

"Really?" Hisa looked surprised. "Wow, no wonder."

"What?" Nodoka asked.

"It's no wonder you're the best," Hisa stated simply.

"Huh? Why?" Nodoka was still confused.

Hisa winked. "'Cause you were taught by the best."

Kei chuckled lightly and shook her head. The carefree laughter bounced off the cold stone floor. "That's not true, Hisa. There are plenty of people out there who are better than me."

Hisa raised an eyebrow. "Well aren't you humble, champion? You're always quick to downplay your skills, Kei. But I guess that's just who you are. You never underestimate your opponents. I guess that's how you're so good. But you're right, even if you are on top now, you might get dethroned this time round. Who knows, it might even be the student who surpasses the teacher." Hisa looked at Nodoka, trying to make a point.

Kei took all this lightheartedly and smiled. "I look forward to seeing how much you improved, Nodoka." She walked over and lightly patted Nodoka on the back.

Nodoka smiled. "Of course. And I'm not going to go easy on you. I'm going to the top."

"Spoken like a true champion," Kei replied. "Hard work will always pay off, Nodoka. Just don't forget what made mahjong so fun, alright? No matter how far behind you are, or how strong your opponents are, you have to try to have fun."

Nodoka nodded at the advice. It was the same advice Kei had told her years ago in the hospital. And after her recent setback, Nodoka was determined not to lose sight of her reason for playing mahjong.

Hisa chuckled inwardly. _My, my. The reporters are going to eat this up. We now not only have one, but two champions. Both the inter-high and the inter-middle champion are together in one school. I hope they'll be prepared for all the interviews they're going to have to do. This is going to be great publicity for Kiyosumi, not that we need it. Hisa shivered as she remembered how the reporters hounded her and the rest of the team last year after Kiyosumi's win in the inter-high._

"Well, I'll head in first." Hisa spoke to Nodoka and Kei. "Mihoko is waiting for me."

"I'm ready too," Kei said. She turned to Nodoka. "Don't take too long now."

Nodoka watched as Hisa and Kei walked out of the changing rooms. She turned to face her reflection in the mirror. _I will get to the top. President was only joking when she said Kei might get dethrone this year, but it could very well happen. It's not impossible. Kei knows this well. Kei is an extremely skilled player. It was no fluke that Kiyosumi won the team tournament last year with Kei as the captain. She is just that good. But, there is someone else out there, whose mahjong skills may be on par with, if not better than, even Kei's. That is the person I must defeat...Miyanaga Saki._

* * *

Nodoka regretted staying in the onsen for so long. True to Hisa's words, the onsen was heavenly. But the heat made her lightheaded and now she was having trouble focusing on the mahjong game in front of her. It took all of her concentration just to avoid going into the negatives. This game was really taking a toll on her.

She glanced at the person sitting across from her in frustration. The sight of the familiar purple hair only irked her further. When Hisa announced that a pro was going to come and help out, Nodoka would have never guessed it would be her. Why oh why did Hisa have to be acquainted with her? It seems as if the pro held back completely the last time they went head to head in mahjong and was now playing at her true potential. Nodoka could barely keep up. _Damn that Katsudon eating pro. I've been played._

Fujita smirked. _Ms. Monster Boobies is squirming. I guess she really wasn't all that special after all. As for the other two..._ Her gaze shifted to the blonde on her right. Fujita recoiled in surprise. _What the...her right eye is open! _In all of the games she's played against the vice president, Fujita has never seen her open her right eye once. _I wonder why she keeps it closed normally. Maybe because it's blue, unlike her other one which is red. That's a bit strange. _Fujita closed her eyes and briefly thought back to the previous games. _Ms. Fukuji-san, was it? She seems to be very good at reading the flow and predicting her opponent's hands. She's very clearsighted. She's easily the second best player here at Kiyosumi...second only to her..._

Fujita now shifted her gaze to the left.

_Arakawa Kei. The current Inter-High National Champion._

_ She's a monster. __I can never tell what she's thinking and there never seems to be any aggressive aura around her. When she attacks, it comes out of nowhere. If I'm not careful, I can easily overlook her and forget about her, but the moment I do, I'm dead. Unlike other monsters, like Ryuumonbuchi's Amae Koromo, she doesn't give off a deadly aura. I need to be very careful when dealing with her. What's even more unnerving isn't her playing style, but her unwavering smile. I can't tell what she's thinking. Mahjong is as much a psychological game as a game of skill and luck and one can easily tell, Kei is a seasoned veteran at mahjong. She can easily beat some of the current pros._

Fujita caught Hisa observing their game out of the corner of her eyes and smiled. _You've got quite a team here, Hisa. I must say, the other schools must watch out for Kiyosumi because this team here is going to be tough to beat._

"Ron. 5,200."

The game was over. Nodoka sighed through her nose. "Good game." Amidst her panic, she ended up playing into Fujita's hand. There goes her last 2,000 points.

"Looks like I win again. That makes it five times in a row now," the pro stated with an air of slight cockiness as she got up and stretched.

Fujita glanced at Hisa, who looked deep in thought after observing the game. Catching Fujita's eye, Hisa nodded and announced, "Alright. You guys have worked hard. Go rest while Fujita pro and I prepare for lunch."

Murmurs of agreement were heard from the three. Hisa left the room promptly with Fujita following closely behind.

"They've gotten better this week, I'll give them that," Fujita said.

"And who do you think is responsible for that?" Hisa asked with good humor. "So what do you think?" she asked Fujita.

"With their skills now, they have a chance of winning the championships again, but it's not for sure. The team is stronger this year than last year though. You were lucky that you didn't lose that many players." Fujita commented.

Hisa hummed in response. "Last year, we struggled all the way until the end. This year is going to be no different, if not harder. Everyone's going to be gunning for us. We'll have to watch ourselves and be as prepared as possible."

"Have you decided on the order yet?" Fujita asked.

Hisa shook her head. "Not quite. I still haven't figured out where to place Nodoka. She plays steadily so she would do well as the third player, but I can't say for certain because I still haven't chosen between Kana and Yuuki yet. I can only decide the lineup when the team is set."

Fujita did not reply right away. "Haramura Nodoka...she's not as good as the media has hyped her up to be," she stated carefully.

Hisa looked at Fujita, her eyes twinkling with playfulness as if she were enjoying the fact that she knew something that Fujita didn't. "Oh don't worry about that. I have a plan to bring out Ms. Genius here at her best."

Fujita only raised an eyebrow and was apprehensive in asking for details. Knowing Hisa, it would probably not be understandable to the sane person. Instead, she dropped the subject and focused on making lunch. _I'll leave Hisa to do her thing. My job here is done._

* * *

Nodoka stared at the tiles in front of her. Playing in Kiyosumi was a lot harder than she expected. Before, she was easily the best player in the school, that she didn't have any competition. Now, here at Kiyosumi, there were so many good players here that Nodoka felt a little overwhelmed. It was quite a wake up call for her.

The president's bad waits, the clearness and understanding that Fujuki sees the game, the ridiculous hands of Arakwa...they were all new to Nodoka. But she wasn't going to lose here. She just has to try harder. She'll show them just how good of a player she is.

"Nodoka, come here for a minute please."

Nodoka looked up from her game and looked at Hisa. "But, I'm in the middle of a game."

"That's alright. This will just take a second," Hisa said.

Nodoka reluctantly got up from her game and walked up to HIsa.

"So...this is going to sound weird, but just hear me out."

Nodoka had a gut feeling this was not going to end well.

* * *

Nodoka scrunched her eyebrows in frustration. Fujita had left, but now someone else had but dominating the games. Nodoka was giving it her all, and hugging her dear Etopen desperately like Hisa had suggested, yet nothing worked against Kei. The champion just didn't seem to have a weak spot.

The others weren't doing that much better against Kei either. Kei had been singlehandedly dominating all of the matches.

"Ron, 8000," Kei flipped her tiles over, revealing the mangan. Nodoka heard Yuuki groan.

"Ughhhh. Not again," Yuuki whined as she handed over the point sticks to Kei, who just smiled and patted Yuuki's head affectionately.

"Don't give up. You have to keep practising. You'll get better eventually. I wasn't always this good, you know," Kei said, trying to encourage the orange-haired freshman.

Yuuki merely hummed in response, too lazy to do anything else.

Kei allowed a slight frown to adorn her face in concern before replacing it with her normal smile. She got up from her seat and stretched a bit.

"Well, I think I'm good for today. I'll see you guys in a bit. I think I could use some fresh air," Kei stated as she bid everyone goodbye.

Yuuki sighed the moment Kei slipped out the room. She slumped over the mahjong table. "That girl is a monster. How many times did she win in a row?" Yuuki whined.

Mako peeked at the scoring sheet. "Um, 8, I think."

"She's a beast," Yuuki replied.

"A total beast," Kana agreed.

"My, my. Don't give up hope just yet, my cute little underclassmen," Hisa admonished them.

"Who's your cute little underclassmen?" Kana growled under her breath.

Hisa ignored the remark. "Kei was right. You guys can't give up now. Remember, we have to defend our championship title," Hisa reminded them.

Everyone went silent. _That's right. We're the defending champions. We can't give up. _

"Now, before we decide the final lineup, I'm going to conduct a little test," Hisa announced. "First, I would like Nodoka, Mihoko, and Kei to sit down at the mahjong table. Then, Yuuki, Kana, and Mako will take turns playing a game against those three."

Mako grimaced. "Oh, fun."

"But of course, it's not going to be an ordinary game," Hisa smiled mischievously.

"Of course," muttered Mako. _Here we go again. Another one of her weird ideas._

"Nodoka, Mihoko, and Kei, I want you three to target the fourth player as much as possible. Now, Yuuki, Kana, and Mako, your goal is to simultaneously defend and attack at the same time. It doesn't matter if you win or lose, but I will be choosing the fifth player based off of your games. Understand?" Hisa explained.

Everyone nodded. "Good. Now let's get to work."

* * *

**Author's note**

wow, hey guys. Uh long time no see. Sorry.

I think I lost my touch. Is the story still interesting? I just didn't know how to make the training camp interesting, and I didn't want to skip the training camp and go directly to prefectures...

Also, who do you want to be the fifth player? Vote, Yuuki, Kana or Mako in the review sections please.

So yea, comments, questions, and criticism all welcome. Please review!

Sosh


	9. Team of Monsters

**Shiraitodai**

It became crystal clear to Sumire, Takami, and Seiko that the other three members of the club were no beginners at mahjong. In fact after only three rounds, Seiko, the unfortunate fourth player, was already in danger of going under. Teru was leading, with Saki and Awai tied for second.

"So, you guys never competed in any competitions?" Sumire asked the three dubiously.

"I competed once in elementary school, but uh, I didn't do very well..." Saki trailed off.

"Saki-chan, Teru-chan and I used to play mahjong together when we were still neighbors," Awai exclaimed. "Saki didn't play plus minus zero back then, so it was a lot more fun playing against them."

"Plus minus zero?" questioned Takami.

"Saki aims for 30,000 every time she plays. In a way it's more impressive than winning. I've only managed to stop her from scoring 30,000 once, but she ended up with 29,600 points which is still plus minus zero," Teru explained.

"...Is that even possible? And why would she do that? Isn't the point of mahjong to win?" asked Seiko.

Teru stayed silent and Saki merely smiled uncomfortably.

"So basically, as of right now, no one's been able to break that streak of hers?" Sumire asked.

Saki shook her head silently, a bit embarrassed by all the attention on her.

Sumire was agape. "That's...that's so..."

"Awesome!" Seiko shouted in joy.

"I was going to say scary," said Sumire. "I doubt even pros could do it. I wouldn't have even thought it was possible" she exclaimed and stared at the shy brunette in disbelief. Who would've thought this innocent girl, blushing girl in front of her would possess this sort of immense skill.

"I-I'm not that good," stammered Saki, her eyes glued to the floor. "Onee-chan is a better player than me and Awai-chan is also really good."

Sumire recoiled in surprise. Teru is an even more amazing player than Saki? If Saki could manipulate the game and achieve perfect plus minus zeroes every single time, then Sumire could barely begin to even imagine what Teru could do. And Awai too? No wonder poor Seiko was already running for her life in the fourth round. These three were not normal players. No, not even close. _Is this the power of a god, or a devil?_

Sumire clapped her hands twice. "Alright, well listen up. In two weeks, we'll have a training camp to prepare for prefectures. This will be the first time that Shiraitodai has ever competed in the inter-high so let's try our best."

"Yayy! Training camp!" Awai cheered as she bounced around the room.

"Where are we going?" Takami asked.

"Seiko reserved a couple rooms in a resort in Nagano for free. Apparently, her cousin knows the people who own it," Sumire replied.

"Wow, Nagano is so far away," Saki mumbled in awe. _Nagano is where Kiyosumi is... What are the chances of..._

* * *

**Two weeks later...**

"Now that all the bags are in the trunk, let's get going," said Sumire. "Teru, do you mind sitting shotgun to help me with directions?"

Teru stared blankly at Sumire. "..."

Seiko looked at Sumire confusedly. "Er, you okay president? Did you not sleep last night or something, because you're kind of out of your mind right now."

Sumire felt stupid for asking such a question. "Right...nevermind. Sei-errr, Takami do you mind?" she asked.

Takami shook her head and wordlessly got in the shotgun seat with her cup of her favorite oolong tea.

Sumire sighed tiredly. "I really shouldn't have spent all night thinking of our training regimen," she muttered and prayed that she would stay awake the entire drive to Nagano.

"I call sitting next to Teruru!"

"Shhh! Saki's sleeping!"

"Hey watch it! You'll spill the tea!"

"Are we there yet?"

"I'm hungry. Do we have food?"

"Anyone want to play mahjong?"

"My butt is numb!"

"Saki, why is your head so big?"

"I just noticed..we really are flat, aren't we?"

"Wah! It's the mountains!"

"We're here!" Sumire shouted as the van came to a stop. "Thank goodness," she muttered under her breath as she rested her head on the wheel. "I don't think I could've taken anymore of that whining." Takami just patted the president's back in sympathy.

One by one, the Shiraitodai mahjong club members got off the car. Saki was the last to come out, after multiple attempts of trying to shake her awake.

"Wowww…" Everyone stared at the luxurious resort in front of them. The main building was huge and full of beautiful engravings and statues. It's Roman style mixed with a twist of modern techniques made the building rival even those during the Renaissance. Saki inhaled deeply and could smell the pool from where she was standing. Lush green, clearly cut hedges surrounded the resort and to finish it all of, a giant fountain was placed in the middle as the centerpiece.

"You're cousin's friend must be really, really, really, really, super, incredibly rich," Saki commented in awe.

"Yeah. She-" Seiko started but was cutoff.

"Seiko!"

Everyone turned to the new voice, who belonged to someone who had just walked out of the resort. The newcomer, tall with short greenish, greyish hair like Seiko's, was wearing a male uniform with a loose tie.

"I thought Seiko said her cousin was a 'she,'" Awai mumbled under breath to Saki who merely shrugged.

"Wait a minute...I recognize that uniform," Sumire's eyes widened.

"Yo Seiko. Long time no see" The newcomer now stood right front of them.

"No way," mumbled Sumire.

"Long time no see, Jun." Seiko smiled and shook hands with the newcomer.

"RYUUMONBUCHI?!" Sumire shrieked while pointing at Jun.

Seiko and Jun both stared at Sumire. Jun scratched the back of her head and smiled uncomfortably.

"Heh, I guess I should introduce myself. My name is Inoue Jun and I am Seiko's cousin." Jun bowed. "And yes, I am from Ryuumonbuchi." Jun looked at Sumire when she said that and Sumire offered a weak smile. Then she looked back at the rest of Shiraitodai and said, "And yes, I am a girl."

"WHAT?!" They shouted out in response.

" Geez, no wonder Seiko is like that," Awai mumbled. "It's probably genetic. They look like brothers."

"I HEARD THAT, AWAI!" Seiko retaliated.

"How come you never told me you knew someone from Ryuumonbuchi mahjong club?" Sumire asked.

"Huh?" Seiko was confused. "I don't know. It's just a small thing. Why? Is it such a big deal to be from Ryuumonbuchi?"

Sumire wanted to strangle Seiko but was interrupted by Jun, who was smirking.

"That's 'cuz we were the West Tokyo representatives in last years nationals. We got all the way up to the semi-finals where we lost to Kiyosumi and Rinkai girls."

Seiko's eyes bulged out. "Really? How come I didn't know?" Seiko looked at Sumire.

Sumire just looked at Seiko like she was crazy. "How the heck was I supposed to know you didn't know who the prefecture champs were? Wait a minute. Seiko, you said that Jun here knows the owner of this resort. So the owner you were referring to is.."

Jun smiled. "Yep. None other than-"

"The Ryuumonbuchi's, of course." A high voice rang out from the entrance of the resort. A girl with long blonde hair and crystal blue eyes regally walked down the steps and up to Jun. Her hair swayed in the wind and Saki swore she looked like royalty. "You were taking so long, so I came looking for you. Are these the guests you told me about?"

"Yes, Touka. This is the Shiraitodai mahjong club." Jun gestured to the team.

Touka ran her gaze along every member. Her eyes narrowed, before she let out a dangerous smile. "Why, welcome to the Ryuumonbuchi resort here in Nagano. It's one of the many resorts we own in Japan. We own a couple in Tokyo as well, but this one in Nagano is my favorite resort. You'll definitely love it here." Touka boasted.

"I assume you are Ryuumonbuchi Touka, president of the mahjong club and daughter of the headmaster at Ryuumonbuchi. I am Hirose Sumire, president of the Shiraitodai mahjong club."

Touka turned to face Sumire. "Nice to meet you, desu-wa. I take it you are going to use my resort as a training camp for the prefectures, am I right?" Touka smiled, amused.

"Yes." Sumire looked down into Touka's eyes.

"Good luck on your training then, though I doubt it will change anything, desu-wa." Touka said as she flipped her hair over her shoulder.

"Excuse me?" Sumire advanced.

"Well, you should know that the Ryuumonbuchi club is here as well. There is not a chance we will lost at the prefectures. We will breeze through the prefectures and move on to the nationals, where I will shine like the true idol I am and show that Haramura Nodoka who the real idol that everyone adores is." With a final smirk, Touka turned around and walked back into the resort.

"Come, Jun. These next few days will be interesting." Touka smiled and eyed the Shiraitodai members one last time before disappearing out of their sight.

"Well, that was...something." Takami broke the weird silence Touka's speech left behind.

"How strong is Ryuumonbuchi?" Saki asked.

Sumire turned towards Saki and started explaining. "Last year, everyone expected Shouan Girls to win prefectures. However, a team of first years from an unknown school came out of nowhere and rampaged through the prefectures. They beat Shouan Girls and became the representatives of West Tokyo. They continued their rampage all the way to the semi-finals of the nationals. Their last player, the captain, was considered last year's MVP. She dropped one player below zero in the first round of the nationals, and then dropped two players below zero in the second round. She is, without a doubt, a national class monster."

"...who is she?" Saki asked in a meek voice.

"She is...Amae Koromo. The players who played her all said that playing Amae was like slowly drowning while wearing a straightjacket. Those who play her experience isshanten hell. Everyone's hands besides Amae's own hand, starts around five tiles away from tenpai and barely progresses. While you're too busy trying just to get into tenpai, she would have already set everything up for a haitei raoyue win." Sumire let her words hang heavily in the air.

The team felt uneasy. This was the opponent they were up against. This was the monster they have to beat.

"Haitei raoyue... To scoop the moon from the depths of the ocean," Saki murmured. Teru threw Saki a quick side glance and shook her head slightly so only Saki noticed. Saki bit her lip. Getting to the nationals might have been harder than she thought.

"Alright. So what if we have to train in the same resort as our number one opponent?" Sumire asked as she eyed each of the club members in their eyes. Saki saw the fighting spirit in Sumire's eyes and felt herself own hope rise with Sumire's own burning passion.

"We, Shiraitodai, will not back down. Now let's go. Tomorrow, the training begins," Sumire commanded.

Everyone followed Sumire into the resort. Saki lagged behind the rest of the club. She paused at the entrance and looked up at the crescent moon in the sky._ I wonder if Haramura-san is looking at the same moon I'm looking at right now. Haramura-san...wait for me. I will find you at nationals!_

* * *

Saki tossed and turned around in her bed. She rolled slightly out of the bed and squinted her eyes at the clock. It read 2:32 am. Groaning silently, she lied down on her back and stared mindlessly at the white ceiling. It has been six hours since she got into bed, but she hadn't slept a wink.

_Why can't I sleep? My body is just restless. There's something bothering me but I don't know what. Am I nervous? I don't think so. Is it the new environment? Is the bed too hard? Too soft? No, that's not it either. What's bothering me?_

Saki sat up in her bed and glanced out the window. The full moon almost filled up the entirety of the window. It's so big. Deciding to take a quick walk to loosen her mind and body, Saki slid her legs off the bed until her feet came in contact with the cold floor.

"Saki?"

Saki looked to her left.

"Sorry, Onee-chan. Did I wake you up?"

Teru sat up from her bed and sleepily rubbed her eyes. She then glanced at Saki's disheveled appearance and tired eyes.

"Couldn't sleep?" Teru asked. Saki shook her head.

"Come here." Teru lifted the blanket and scooted over on the bed. Saki gratefully slid in to the bed and sat next to her sister.

"Nightmares?" Teru inquired.

Saki shook her head. "No, it's just...I just couldn't sleep. My mind just won't let me rest. It's like something out there is messing with my head and my body. I don't know. I can't explain it that well." Saki pulled the sheets as she brought her knees up. She rested her head on her knees.

Teru ruffled Saki's head. "So you feel it too, huh?"

Saki's head snapped up to look at her sister. "Wait. You feel it too, Onee-chan?"

Teru nodded her head. "I felt it the moment we walked into the resort. But I can ignore it. It looks like you can't." Saki just shook her head. Teru looked out the window and was met with the giant full moon, shining in all its glory.

"The full moon…" Teru mumbled.

"Did you say something, Onee-chan?"

Teru shook her head. "No, it's nothing. Let's try to get some sleep, Saki." Saki nodded and they laid down in bed. Teru wrapped her arms around Saki's small frame. Inside her sister's warm embrace, Saki finally fell asleep that night.

_The one that scoops the moon from the depths of the ocean..._

* * *

Saki woke up and looked down next to her. Teru was gone. Instead, there was a note that read:

Went to buy sweets with Seiko.

Come downstairs for breakfast when you wake up.

~Onee-chan

Saki shook her head in disbelief. _Typical Onee-chan._

She quickly got dressed and walked out the room.

_Oh no. Which way do I go? Where's the lobby again? I'm lost~_

Saki cried mentally. She picked a random hallway and started walking.

_Oh look! A girl! Maybe I can ask her for directions to the lobby. Wow, she's short. She looks like an elementary schooler. She's even wearing bunny ears! How cute. _

_She's coming this way! I should prob-_

Saki froze. Her mind went blank and her heart skipped a beat. She shivered.

_W-w-what was that? _Saki whipped her head around. The girl had disappeared.

_Who was that girl?_ _That was scaryyyy. More importantly...where am I!?_

* * *

"Um...I thought we were going to play mahjong?" Saki asked hesitantly.

"We are," Sumire replied as a matter-of-factly.

"Hm...then why are you blindfolding us?" asked Saki as she fiddled with the piece of cloth covering her eyes.

"Because, we're going to play mahjong blindfolded," answered Sumire.

"Huh?!" exclaimed Seiko. "Why?!"

"Because, if you can play blindfolded, you can play normally," Sumire replied.

"Well, no duh!"

"Just listen to me. Playing mahjong blindfolded will force you to pay attention to the feel of the tiles, focus on everyone's discarded tiles, and predict everyone's hands and unplayed tiles. Overall, it will help your focus and concentration so that when you play in a real game, it'll be easier. Also, playing blindfolded will force you to visualize the mahjong table in your mind, which is an important skill," Sumire explained.

Saki gulped nervously. "That sounds...difficult,"

"Of course. Not only do you have to memorize all the tiles played, but you also have to pay specific attention to the flow of the game. It'll be very easy to get confused when someone calls pon or chi," Teru analyzed.

"Sounds like fun!" Awai laughed. "I'll beat you all!"

Seiko chuckled uneasily. "I couldn't even beat them normally. Oh man, my memorization sucks," she muttered.

"Remember, you must be completely sure of what tiles you drew, discarded, and have. If you mistakenly make an illegal call, there's a penalty waiting," Sumire advised. "Confidence is a huge part of playing mahjong as well. This will build up your confidence so you are completely sure of every call you make. Now, let's start. Saki, Seiko, Takami, and Awai will go first. We'll switch out the winner and loser each round. Remember to call out your discards."

* * *

Seiko grasped at the hem of her skirt. The game was not going so well. After around three turns in, she started to jumble up the discards.

"1 sou," Saki called out.

_So she discarded a 1 sou. Her previous discard was also a sou...a 6 sou? No, maybe that was Awai. Or Takami? Man, how am I supposed to play a game where the only thing I am sure of is my hand. I can't remember everyone else's tiles._

"Pon!"

Seiko inwardly groaned._ Not again. To make the game harder than it already was, Awai has been randomly making calls. That's my freaking specialty! I'm the fisher here, yet I can't get a read on the flow, and the calling is messing up the turns and the discards. I can't do this anymore! Is it my turn? I don't even know that!_

"Chi!"

_Have mercy, Awai! That's the third call you've made this round! Stop stealing my playing style!_

"Kan!"

_Saki?! Not Awai, but Saki? What is she planning?_

"Tsumo. Rinshan kaihou. 3,000 all."

Seiko yanked off her blindfold. "No way..."

But true enough, the revealed tiles showed a winning hand, and a rinshan kaihou at that too. Seiko gaped at Saki in awe. To be able to manipulate the game, even while being blindfolded...is just ridiculous.

Sumire and Teru who were watching stayed silent the entire game. When the game finally ended, Sumire was more than satisfied. Saki, who was told not to play plus minus zero, took the lead, with Awai close behind. Takami had managed to pull off a yakuman hand in her last dealer round and was thus able to bring her points up to third place. Poor Seiko...the lack of sight completely drained her confidence, and her usual style of calling pons did not happen.

"My goodness, I'm exhausted. That was torture!" Seiko screamed.

"It was a good chance to practice your defense skills. Awai and you have particularly lacking defensive skills," commented Sumire.

"Who needs defense? I can beat everyone with my amazing offensive skills. Plus offense is the best defense!" quoted Awai.

Teru stared at Awai in shock. "Wow, I can't believe you even know that quote. That was shocking."

"Yah!"

"Anyways," Sumire interrupted before another petty argument broke out. "Saki and Seiko switch out with me and Teru."

Sumire sat down in Seiko's previous spot and tied the blindfold over her eyes.

_Now, I'm Shiraitodai's sharpshooter. Let's see how well can I aim blindfolded?_

* * *

Sumire was exhausted. Teru went on a dealer streak and dropped all three of them into the negatives. No one had won a single hand in the entire game. It as a perfect game by Teru. _That was a really scary game. I've never seen anyone play like that before. Saki wasn't joking when she praised Teru's mahjong skills._

Sumire sighed. There was still one more problem she hadn't solved yet. A mahjong team consists of five people, and there were six. One of them would have to sit out. And once she chose the five players, how was she going to line them up. They were all very offense-oriented players, maybe excluding Saki, who is extremely adaptable and amazing at both defending and attacking. Takami also plays defensively until the last dealer round. Awai and Seiko only care about offense. Their defensive skills are quite lacking. _And Awai has that one trick..._ And Teru...well, she's Teru. She'll be fine.

Choosing the lineup was turning out to be quite the dilemma. _Why is the team so good this year. This is too ironic!_

* * *

Sumire eyed each of the five people standing in front of her. They had all worked hard during the training camp, even Awai, who despite her constant complaining, actually listened to everything Sumire had suggested.

This team would go a long way, maybe even to the top, and Sumire was going to try her very best to get them there.

"Alright. The training camp is finally coming to an end. You all have worked very hard and I am proud of each and everyone of you. Now, for the moment you all have been waiting for. It is time." Sumire cleared her throat. "Here is the line-up."

"Playing as our vanguard, is Miyanaga Teru."

Teru gave a slight nod as the rest of the team cheered politely.

Saki beamed at her sister. "You'll be an amazing vanguard, Onee-chan."

Teru looked at her sister. "I know. I'll crush them all, so it'll be easier for you, Saki."

Sumire cleared her throat again, before continuing. "In the sergeant position, we have Takami Shibuya."

The said girl merely took a sip from her teacup. Awai cackled. "Our harvester is as silent as ever. Her opponents would never see it coming," she commented.

"I will be playing as lieutenant," Sumire continued.

"Go pres!" Seiko shouted.

"Awai, will be our co-captain."

"Yay, yay, yay!" Awai bounced around the room.

And finally," Sumire turned to face Saki. "Saki, you will be our captain."

Saki gulped and nodded shyly.

Seiko patted Saki on her back. "You'll be a great captain."

Awai nodded. "Yep, yep! Saki-chan's got our back. There's no way we can lose."

Teru stayed silent, but Saki could see the pride in her eyes.

Sure Saki was nervous. She's never had anyone rely on her before and the role of captain was one of the utmost importance. It's the position that decides the end of the match. No matter what the point spread happened to be, Saki would be expected as a captain to win. But she could do it. If Teru believed in her, if her whole team believed in her, she would make sure they won, no matter what.

"Seiko, you will be our backup," Sumire said as she turned to face the slightly disappointed green-head.

"Yes, president," Seiko replied dejectedly.

Sumire put a hand on the green-head's shoulder. "Don't feel dejected. We'll be constantly switching you between Takami and me, so you'll have plenty of playing time."

Seiko wiped away the tears in her eyes hastily and bowed. "Thank you, president." Sumire nodded in acknowledgement.

Awai smirked. "Everyone better watch out, because they won't know what hit them."

"President?" Teru called out.

"Yes?"

"Are the lineups for the other schools out yet?" Teru asked. Saki looked at her sister in confusion.

"Uh, yes, they are. Why do you ask?" Sumire questioned as she got on the computer to check the lineup of the other teams.

"I was wondering...what's the lineup of Kiyosumi?" Saki perked up at her sister's question. _Kiyosumi...that's where Haramura-san is._

"Found it," Sumire said as she scrolled down on the computer. Her eyes widened. "They're going all out this year, huh? What a lineup! Its..."

* * *

**Author's note**

double update! :D

anyways, don't forget to vote for the lineup of Kiyosumi and review please.

also, i feel like my writing style changed and the story isn't as interesting anymore. Idk, tell me what you guys think please!

Sosh


	10. Holding Back

Sumire didn't smile a lot. She's the more serious type. Very few things could make her smile (which may or may not include a certain purple-haired girl and of course mahjong).

But as she stood next to her teammates, facing the gorgeous venue where the prefectures were being held, Sumire felt the corners of her lips upturn a little bit, just a little bit. It took her three whole years, but she finally got here. But this was only the beginning. No, with these five standing next to her, they were going to go much farther than she ever dared to wish for,

Sumire took a deep breath. "Ready, everyone?" The subtle nods and smiles on everyone's faces almost made Sumire smile wider. Almost.

"Let's go then."

* * *

"Woah! There's so many people here," Seiko noted as she stepped sideways in order to avoid bumping into a group of girls.

"Yeah. West Tokyo is one of the biggest 'prefectures' despite being only half of Tokyo, which is why our prefecture preliminaries start a day earlier than other prefectures. We have to go through three non televised elimination rounds in order to qualify for the prefectures. Prefectures like Nara and Nagano for example are a lot smaller and don't require any elimination rounds," Takami explained.

"Ouch," Seiko grimaced. "That's a lot of competition."

"Hehe. That's okay! We'll just have to beat them all!" Awai declared. "It'll be a lot of fun. So many people to crush!" she laughed playfully.

Seiko stared at Awai in an awed silence. "I feel bad for Awai's opponents," she finally concluded. Takami nodded in agreement.

"Hey, President. What's happening over there?" Seiko asked gesturing towards a giant group of reporters crowding at the entrance.

Sumire shrugged. "I don't know. Probably one of the seeded schools are arriving though they don't play until the afternoon. It's probably either Shouan or..."

"Ah! They're here! It's Ryuumonbuchi! Winners of last year's prefectures! They got all the way up to the semi-finals and are the favorites this year," one reporter shouted.

"...them," Sumire finished, as the group of reporters started going crazy.

_"Inoue Jun!"_

_"Sawamura Tomoki!"_

_"Kunihiro Hajime!"_

_"Ryuumonbuchi Touka!"_

_"Last year these four, including Amae Koromo, dominated prefectures and rampaged all the way until the national semi-finals!"_

"Wow, they're really popular," Takami commented. _But this year, we came prepared as well. We are the underdogs this time. _

"Wait. Where are Teru and Saki?" Seiko suddenly asked.

The members looked around. Sumire mentally facepalmed. "Please don't tell me.."

* * *

"What are we going to do about Koromo? She's late. If she doesn't make it in time for the afternoon preliminaries, we'll be disqualified, desuwa." Touka exclaimed.

"Hey, don't look at me. I went to her house and set up ten different alarms," said Jun. "If worse comes to worse, Ayumu can sub in."

"What!? But I'm just a maid!" cried Ayumu.

"It's okay. Just don't go under zero, and we can catch up on points later. Just count on me," Jun reassured as she put her arm over the smaller girl.

"Grrr...Koromo better get here soon, desuwa!" fumed Touka.

"Calm down, Touka. I'm sure Koromo knows what she's doing," Hajime reassured.

"But she-"

Touka froze, as did the others.

"What was that!?" Jun exclaimed, alarmed after recieving a sudden chill down her spine.

They all turned just in time to see two figures, arm in arm disappear around the corner.

"Those two...they are from Shiraitodai," said Tomoki, pushing up her glasses. "They're wearing their uniforms."

"Shiraitodai?" Jun asked.

"I recognize them. They were at the training camp, desuwa," said Touka.

"Who are they and what was that just now?" Hajime asked. "It almost felt like…"

There was a pause.

"There's no way," Jun chuckled nervously. "There can't be anyone else like Koromo."

"R-right. That's impossible," Hajime tried to reassure herself and the others.

_There's no way...right?_

* * *

"Teru! Saki!" Awai exclaimed happily before pouncing on the former.

"Where were you guys?" questioned Sumire. "Nevermind. Takami, can you make sure that those two won't get lost again? I'm counting on you."

Takami nodded.

"Anyways, we just looked at the tournament match-ups. We're in room D. We're playing against three other no name schools, but don't let your guard down. Teru, I know this might be a weird request, but can you hold back a little?" asked Sumire.

Teru cocked an eyebrow. "You want me to...hold back?" she asked again for clarity.

"Yeah. If you attract too much attention now and reveal everything you have now, we could be in trouble in later matches, so can you hold back? Just play like a normal high schooler," Sumire said.

"...Do I not play like a normal high schooler?" Teru asked.

"No," Takami, Seiko, and Sumire all answered in unison, shaking their heads vigorously. "Not at all."

Teru sighed mentally. _I've never had to hold back before, not even against my parents or my aunt, not that I had to._

"Will the players for round one of the elimination rounds, please report to your rooms? The matches will begin shortly."

"Alright, it's time. Seiko, please show Teru the way to room D. We'll be watching from the viewing room. Good luck, Teru," said Sumire.

"Don't need it."

* * *

_"Begin the first match!"_

Kadomatsu Youko

Nagamori Kazuto

Tsuchiya Yuri

Miyanaga Teru

"And it has begun! Kadomatsu Youko-san is the first dealer."

Youko spun the dice. _This is going to be so easy. I may be a first year, but I've been playing mahjong since I was ten. These no name schools aren't going to be able to keep up._

"Ron. 3,000." _See? Easy peasy. I've got this game in the bag._

* * *

"Huh."

"What's wrong, Saki?" Sumire asked.

Saki hesitated and eventually shook her head. "Nothing." _I guess Onee-chan really is holding back after all. She didn't use 'that'._

Sumire stared at Saki in confusion, which Awai noticed and smiled knowingly.

_Even without her 'mirror', those beginners won't stand a chance. I doubt the match would even get to the Lieutenant round. _

* * *

"Ron. 1,200."

Teru felt her right eye twitch. _What a low.._

_"Another win from Kadomatsu-san! This makes it three wins in row. What a dealer streak! Can no one stop her? With this, Kadomatsu-san is pulling ahead into the lead."_

Teru sighed. _Stupid Sumire telling me to hold back. Now, I have to watch this kid dominate and with a dealer streak no less. She's starting get cocky. Her moves are getting easier and easier to read. I wish Saki was here right now. I'm so bored._

"Ron. 2,000" It was another win for Kadomatsu-san.

_Another tiny hand?! This is going to take forever._ Teru noticed the other two players shaking in their seats. _Really? You think she's scary? What am I going to do with you two._

Teru's eyes flickered over the entire table once.

_Tsuchiya's hand is nowhere near tenpai. Nagamori's hand is two away from tenpai. Her discards are so easy to read. Unfortunately for her, her winning tile is deep in the wall. The only way for her to win is..._

Teru smirked.

_I think I may have some fun after all._

* * *

_Kadomatsu_

_These players really are no match for me. Nagamori-san is clearly collecting pins and there doesn't seem to be a clear yaku in Tsuchiya-san's hand. As for this Miyanaga-san, her discards are just complete wack. There is no pattern at all! She probably doesn't know how to play. I almost feel sorry for her._

_Wait…_

Youko glanced at the scoreboard.

_Miyanaga is the only one who hasn't played into my hand. She's still at 100,000. Her wacky discards are completely dodging my attacks._

Youko mentally smirked. _It doesn't matter. If she's just focusing everything on defending, she can't beat me. Plus, she'll slip up eventually._

* * *

"Hey, President. Is this really okay?" Seiko asked in concern.

"What do you mean?" Sumire asked.

"I mean, Teru's not doing anything because you told her to hold back," explained Seiko.

"Don't worry. Teru's just doing her job. Plus, the wins were with very low scoring hands. Kadomatsu-san won't beat Teru by a lot even if Teru doesn't do anything. Honestly, I'll be more surprised if Teru maintains her score at 100,000 the entire match," remarked Sumire.

"Won't that stand out though?" asked Takami. "In order to do that, she'll have to stop the other players from winning through tsumo. Wouldn't that attract attention?"

"...probably not."

"It doesn't matter though, does it? I thought the first three rounds aren't televised to the public because they are elimination rounds?" said Takami.

"True, but it still is being recorded. Any team can easily get their hands on the elimination round recordings if one asked the right people," said Sumire. "But I suppose you're right. We'll tell Teru to finish it quickly after the first half is over," she decided.

"But watching this is kind of funny. Teru looks so bored right now," Awai laughed. "Sumire, you are evil."

* * *

Teru flopped backwards into her seat as the bell signaled the end of the first half. That was pure torture. She glanced at the scoreboard and smirked. _I hope I didn't scare them too much._

Kadomatsu sat stunned. _What the hell just happened? I was winning in the beginning, but then Nagamori started winning off of me. And then Tsuchiya started winning off of me. The score kept going back and forth, but…_

Kadomatsu stared at the scoreboard. _...this cannot be a coincidence._

_Kadomatsu Youko 100,000_

_Nagamori Kazuto 100,000_

_Tsuchiya Yuri 100,000_

_Miyanaga Teru 100,000_

_And worst of all_, Kadomatsu turned her head to look at the quiet purple haired girl to her left. _That Miyanaga hasn't done anything! She never won and never lost!_

* * *

"Seiko," Sumire growled with her hands pressed against her face. "Tell Teru to stop messing around and start winning. This is standing out even more."

"Y-yes!" Seiko shouted as she ran off to find Teru.

* * *

Teru groaned mentally. First Sumire wants her to hold back, now she wants her to win but "not too much!" Seiko had told her.

_Sumire. You better pray I don't fall asleep half way through._

* * *

"What is she doing?!" Sumire growled in a whisper as she leaned forward in her chair, body completely tense from frustration. The second half of the match began ten minutes ago and Teru was listening to her advice too well.

"She's doing well," Awai commented with a smile. She, unlike Sumire, was completely relaxed and laying back in her chair.

"I thought I told her to hold back," Sumire muttered.

"You also told her to win," Seiko pointed out.

"Winning eight hands in a row and going on a six round dealer repeat is not holding back," Sumire whispered harshly.

"It is for Teru," Seiko remarked calmly. "Plus this is more interesting than having the points stuck at 100,000."

Sumire groaned.

"Relax, people will just think she's lucky. Plus, her hands have all been cheap. None of them have been higher than a mangan. This won't draw that much attention," Takami reasoned in an effort to soothe the fuming president.

"Plus, it's only an elimination round, so no one's watching anyways," Seiko added.

Sumire had no choice but to calm down. She leaned back into her chair with a sigh.

_"What is she doing?"_

_"What is the player from Shiraitodai thinking?"_

_"Why didn't she declare tsumo? She just discarded her winning tile."_

_"Did she just give up her dealer streak?"_

_"Maybe she's just a beginner. You know, beginner's luck and everything."_

The murmurs in the room grew as the screen revealed Teru's hand.

Sumire could only facepalm as the girl from Kadomatsu won the round with a tanpin tsumo, stopping Teru's dealer streak.

"See? She is holding back," Awai said playfully, enjoying the reactions of the annoyed club president.

_She didn't have to make it so obvious…_

* * *

"We passed the elimination rounds easy-peasy," said Awai. "And I didn't even get to play a single game," Awai complained.

"Well, neither did Saki. But you don't see her complaining," Sumire said. "Don't worry, you two will probably play in the matches from now on. The opponents will be tougher."

Seiko thought for a moment. "Let's see, we have one more match in the afternoon, three more tomorrow, and finally the fi-"

"Don't get so caught up. We have to get there first. As Sumire said, things won't be as easy now," Takami said bluntly.

Seiko merely hummed.

_"Will the players for round one of the preliminaries, please report to your rooms? The matches will begin shortly."_

Teru slumped in her chair, exhausted. _I've already played three matches. I can't do this anymore. _"Do I still have to hold back?" she asked Sumire.

Sumire nodded sympathetically. "Yes, but you still have to keep the lead."

Teru puffed her cheeks in protest. She then whipped her head to stare at Seiko.

"W-what?" Seiko stammered nervously under the older girl's glare.

"Do you want to play?" Teru asked.

"H-huh?" Seiko blinked twice in surprise.

Teru turned back to face Sumire. "Seiko's subbing in for me," Teru announced stubbornly as she pushed Seiko in front of her.

"W-wait. I-I didn't agree-"

Sumire sighed. "Just go, Seiko."

'Y-yes!" Seiko bowed hastily.

"Good luck!" Saki called out.

"Well then. Let's go watch."

* * *

_"Pon!"_

_"Chi!"_

_"Chi!"_

_"Tsumo!"_

"Wow, Seiko's on fire!" Saki exclaimed.

Sumire looked up in surprise. She did not expect Seiko to do this well. _Looks like the fisherman had been waiting all day and the fish are finally here._

Sumire turned and looked over at the older Miyanaga. "What did you say to her before she left?" she asked.

Teru looked over and raised an eyebrow. "What are you talking about?"

"You whispered something in her ear," Sumire pointed out. "What'd you say?"

"Oh. I told her to win the game by herself or else," Teru replied nonchalantly.

"Onee-chan!" Saki scolded her older sister.

Sumire's eye twitched. "You threatened her…"

Teru shook her head. "No, I encouraged her. Not threatened."

"Right…" _No wonder Seiko's playing like her life depended on it._

Awai chuckled. "That's Teru for you. But it looks like it's working. Look. The girl sitting at East only has 47,000 points left. We're up by over 60,000 points. Takami can win this easily."

"Keep in mind that this is only preliminaries. Don't get too cocky," Takami warned to which Awai merely stuck out her tongue.

"Saki. Awai," Sumire called out to the bored freshman.

"Yes?"

"Here. Since you guys probably won't play until the finals tomorrow, why don't you guys pass some time with this?" Sumire handed each of them a hand held device.

"What is this?" Saki asked examining the piece of technology in her hand.

"It's online mahjong!" Awai declared happily as she pressed some buttons and began to play. Saki observed the game over the girl's shoulder.

"Woah. How do you use this?" Saki asked, completely lost.

Sumire looked over incredulously. "You've got to be kidding me," she murmured before sighing.

_Damn Miyanagas. Can you guys do anything besides mahjong?_

* * *

"I'm b-back," Seiko nervously stood in front of her team, refusing to meet Teru's eyes.

"You did well," Teru stated quietly and Seiko beamed.

"Thank you senpai!" Seiko bowed hastily. She then looked at Takami. "Good luck. End it for us."

Takami just nodded and headed off.

"What are you guys up to?" Seiko noticed the two freshman hunched together and peaked over their shoulders.

"Wow, you guys suck at online mahjong," she commented. _Saki: -52 Awai -46_

Seiko was surprised. She would have never guessed that these two would be bad at online mahjong. _They're worse than I am. How can that be?_

Sumire tapped Teru's shoulder.

"What do you need?" Teru asked.

"How did you and Saki get into Mahjong?" Sumire asked but immediately stopped noticing how Teru's eyes darkened.

"Uh you don't have to tell me if you don't want to. It's just," Sumire glanced over at Saki. "She plays well because she can read the flow of the tiles. But no matter how much she relies on the flow, she should still be able to play well online. Yet, she's being crushed. I'm trying to figure out why."

Teru sighed. "It's because she's always played based on the flow, even as a little kid. She never had to play solely based on the tiles on the table."

"That's dangerous though," Sumire stated. Teru nodded in agreement.

"What about you? Can you play without the flow?" Sumire asked. Teru stayed silent and gave no response. Sumire was about to drop the topic when the older Miyanaga came out so quietly, Sumire almost missed it. She looked up in surprise, wanting to ask what Teru meant, but the girl was clearly done talking about it.

_"I didn't always rely on the flow."_


End file.
